Researchers from Católica Porto Business School have published a study in the prestigious International Business Review (IBR), one of the leading international business journals and the official journal of the European International Business Academy (EIBA).
The article, titled "The impact of open innovation on the environmental sustainability practices and international sales intensity nexus: A multicountry study", investigates the link between environmental sustainability practices (ESP) and international sales while also addressing how open innovation (OI) strategies affect this relationship.
Ricardo Gonçalves, Associate Professor at Católica Porto Business School, Božidar Vlačić, Assistant Professor and Scientific Coordinator of the Research Centre in Management and Economics (CEGE) and Director of the MSc in Marketing at Católica Porto Business School, Miguel González-Loureiro, Full Professor of Strategy and International Business at the University of Vigo and Rui Sousa, Full Professor of Operations Management at Católica Porto Business School conducted the study.
The research shows that, as environmental issues and customer demand for sustainable practices grow, international companies try to adopt environmental sustainability practices (ESP) while using their global networks to stay competitive. This study examines whether combining environmental sustainability practices (ESP) with open innovation (OI) - while collaborating with external partners like suppliers - helps companies meet sustainability goals and improve their international sales.
The research focused on 514 international manufacturing companies and found something unexpected. While implementing environmental practices tends to increase international sales, when companies try to implement ESP and work closely with suppliers through OI, it weakens ESP's positive impact on international sales.
The study provides arguments as to why this counterintuitive finding happens, significantly contributing to the discussion of the role of the adoption of ESP and sustainable innovation in international firms.
For more detailed insights, the full article is available here.
Following the publication of this study, Ricardo Gonçalves, Božidar Vlačić and Rui Sousa have further expanded their work by drafting a policy paper that builds on these findings, called “The Influence of Environmentally Sustainable Practices in International Sales Intensity: The Moderating Roles of Open Innovation and Rule of Law”,which is available here. This policy brief is part of a growing collection of insights produced by CEGE, with more to come in the near future.
