Three essays in corporate sustainability

This dissertation research is motivated by concerns regarding lack of strategic linkages between the corporate sustainability strategy, the business strategy and the sustainability context. The dissertation consists of three essays.;Essay one investigates the short term linkages between business sustainability and corporate financial performance (CFP) for the large U.S. based firms (by market value). Entry and exit from Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI) has been used as a proxy for overall corporate sustainability performance (CSP) of the firm. Firms' financial performance is evaluated through stock market returns estimated during the event window. GARCH based event study methodology has been used to analyze the sustainability -- performance link. Results indicate that although selection or exclusion from DJSI did not affect the volatility of stock returns, the cumulative stock market returns for newly added firms declined by 1.36% during CAR (-5, +2). In comparison to the inclusion events, no significant market reaction to index exclusions is observed. Analysis of descriptive statistics indicates that the long term financial performance of DJSI companies is at par with the S&P500 firms, thereby suggesting dichotomous impacts of CSP on CFP in the short and long term.;Essay 2 seeks to explore the concept of Corporate Sustainability Performance (CSP) and accompanying constructs such as CSR processes and CSR initiatives. The authors posit a new conceptual model of CSP by synthesizing the review of three distinct generations of CSR and CSP theoretical frameworks and several currently used corporate sustainability assessment methodologies. The extant literature has mostly analyzed these concepts, at best individually and while in several studies they have been confused with one another. Therefore the primary objective is to align these concepts in a common framework known as the CSP conceptual model. Existing models on CSP and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) have been categorized into three phases of development and combined with the analysis of current sustainability assessment methodologies, 3 primary constructs and 8 associated concepts have been identified. A total of 9 research propositions have been put forward to explain the nomological relationships in the conceptual model.;Essay three seeks to identify critical attributes and attribute components of corporate sustainability strategy for global agri-food companies. Semi-structured interviews with 16 sustainability experts from three groups of stakeholders: agri-food businesses, NGOs, and knowledge institutions were conducted. Results from interviews indicate that the five most critical attributes for leading and minimally effective sustainable agri-food companies are: (1) Processes to identify sustainability issues, (2) Engagement with MSGs, (3) Resource commitment to sustainability, (4) Integration of sustainability with traditional management systems, and (5) Measurement of sustainability outcomes. The thematic network analysis of qualitative data pertinent to leading sustainable agri-food firms revealed four global themes around which 16 organizing themes and 52 basic themes were found to be clustered. The four global themes are (1) Sustainability strategy is integral to corporate strategy, (2) Materiality considerations guide CSS, (3) Corporate Sustainability is multi-dimensional, and (4) Focus of CSS is both on internal and external aspects.