“Keen to be green” organizations: a focused rules approach to accountability

Purpose – This paper aims to outline and discuss how to incorporate a practical‐focused rules approach to guide strategic processes to enhance competitiveness and growth, while improving performance measurement and accountability of green organization initiatives.Design/methodology/approach – An examination of theoretical perspectives was undertaken to determine the relevance of the theory to guide business flexibility and decision making to enhance competitiveness and growth, while enabling the implementation of a green agenda, in a changing business environment.Findings – Understanding the importance of flexibility, strategic processes would enable individuals and organizations to better respond to green factors associated with changing business opportunities and customer demands.Practical implications – The paper advocates that an understanding of the focused rules concept can enable business leaders to create green yet practical business strategies to build organizational flexibility, which in turn wi...

[1]  T. Bjørndal,et al.  The East Atlantic Bluefin Tuna Fisheries: Stock Collapse or Recovery? , 2006, Marine Resource Economics.

[2]  K. Eisenhardt,et al.  Strategy as simple rules. , 2001, Harvard business review.

[3]  Neil Carter,et al.  LEARNING TO MEASURE PERFORMANCE: THE USE OF INDICATORS IN ORGANIZATIONS , 1991 .

[4]  Rocky J. Dwyer.  Utilizing simple rules to enhance performance measurement competitiveness and accountability growth , 2007 .

[5]  Keith Michael Hearit,et al.  “Mistakes were made”: Organizations, apologia, and crises of social legitimacy , 1995 .

[6]  農林水産奨励会農林水産政策情報センター,et al.  The green book : appraisal and evaluation in central government , 2003 .

[7]  Alan Meekings.  Unlocking the potential of performance measurement: A practical implementation guide , 1995 .

[8]  Corporate Environmentalism: Doing Well by Being Green , 2007 .

[9]  P. Bansal,et al.  How Standard is Standardized MNC Global Environmental Communication? , 2007 .

[10]  Iain J. Clelland,et al.  Talking Trash: Legitimacy, Impression Management, and Unsystematic Risk in the Context of the Natural Environment , 2004 .

[11]  C. K. Prahalad,et al.  Competing For the Future : breakthrough strategies for seizing control of your industry and creating the markets of tomorrow , 1994 .

[12]  E. Ziegel,et al.  The Balanced Scorecard , 1998 .

[13]  M. Hall.  Corporate Philanthropy and Corporate Community Relations: Measuring Relationship-Building Results , 2006 .

[14]  R. Pascale.  Surfing the Edge of Chaos , 2000 .

[15]  Edwin M. Epstein,et al.  The Historical Enigma of Corporate Legitimacy , 1972 .

[16]  Thomas P. Lyon,et al.  Corporate Environmentalism and Public Policy: Deflecting enforcement of existing regulations , 2004 .

[17]  Sung-Un Yang.  An Integrated Model for Organization—Public Relational Outcomes, Organizational Reputation, and Their Antecedents , 2007 .

[18]  J. Fisher,et al.  Climate change and the U.S. economy: the costs of inaction. , 2008 .

[19]  Kendall Roth,et al.  Why Companies Go Green: A Model of Ecological Responsiveness , 2000 .

[20]  J. M. MARSTRAND.  Measure for Measures , 1971, Nature.

[21]  Samuel Fankhauser,et al.  On climate change and economic growth , 2005 .

[22]  Mark C. Suchman.  Managing Legitimacy: Strategic and Institutional Approaches , 1995 .

[23]  Thomas P. Lyon,et al.  Greenwash: Corporate Environmental Disclosure Under Threat of Audit , 2006 .

[24]  Susan L. Kline,et al.  Corporate Social Responsibility Practices, Corporate Identity, and Purchase Intention: A Dual-Process Model , 2005 .

[25]  J. Wholey,et al.  The Case for Performance Monitoring. , 1992 .

[26]  C. Taylor,et al.  Stern Review: The Economics of Climate Change , 2006 .

[27]  The New Strategic Frontier: Environment, Sustainability, and Entrepreneurial Innovation , 2008, SSRN Electronic Journal.

[28]  S. Livesey,et al.  Transparent and Caring Corporations? , 2002 .

[29]  K. Mackay.  Two Generations of Performance Evaluation and Management System in Australia , 2004 .

[30]  Shameek Konar,et al.  Information As Regulation: The Effect of Community Right to Know Laws on Toxic Emissions , 1997 .

[31]  Patricia Shaw,et al.  Complexity and Management: Fad or Radical Challenge to Systems Thinking? , 2002 .

[32]  Jack A. Brizius.  Getting results: A guide for government accountability , 1991 .

[33]  L. Trigeorgis.  Real Options: Managerial Flexibility and Strategy in Resource Allocation , 1996 .

[34]  J. Pfeffer,et al.  Organizational Legitimacy , 1975 .

[35]  R. Stavins,et al.  Corporate Social Responsibility Through an Economic Lens , 2008, Review of Environmental Economics and Policy.

[36]  Karla K. Gower,et al.  Truth and Transparency , 2006 .

[37]  J. Boyd.  Actional Legitimation: No Crisis Necessary , 2000 .

[38]  S. P. Sethi,et al.  A Conceptual Framework for Environmental Analysis of Social Issues and Evaluation of Business Response Patterns , 1979 .

[39]  Alex Wang,et al.  Priming, Framing, and Position on Corporate Social Responsibility , 2007 .