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Tensions in the strategic integration of corporate sustainability through global standards: Evidence from Japan and South Korea
Author(s) -
Fontana Enrico,
Shin Hyemi,
Oka Chikako,
Gamble Jos
Publication year - 2022
Publication title -
business strategy and the environment
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.123
H-Index - 105
eISSN - 1099-0836
pISSN - 0964-4733
DOI - 10.1002/bse.2923
Subject(s) - corporate sustainability , sustainability , multinational corporation , corporate social responsibility , normative , sustainability reporting , sustainability organizations , social sustainability , strategic management , business , closeness , sustainable development , public relations , political science , marketing , ecology , mathematical analysis , mathematics , finance , law , biology
Abstract Despite the importance of the conflicting dimensions of corporate sustainability for business strategy, little is known about the tensions that derive from adopting global environmental and social standards in East Asia. Through 65 in‐depth interviews conducted in Tokyo and Seoul, this article examines the tensions—and reactions to these tensions—of corporate sustainability managers tasked with the implementation of such standards in Japanese and South Korean multinational corporations. These represent key contexts of inquiry because of their normative tradition of corporate sustainability and geographical closeness. While elucidating that corporate sustainability managers in both countries encounter societal‐commercial, traditional‐modern, and individual‐collective tensions, the article describes the ways they react differently to these tensions. This article contributes to the literature on corporate sustainability and tensions and the contextual literature on corporate sustainability in Japan and South Korea, ultimately offering takeaways for the strategic planning of multinational corporations.