Social Movements as Catalysts for Corporate Social Innovation: Environmental Activism and the Adoption of Green Information Systems

Abstract

Although the literature on social innovation has focused primarily on social enterprises, social innovation has long occurred within mainstream corporations. Drawing upon recent scholarship on social movements and institutional complexity, we analyze how movements foster corporate social innovation (CSI). Our context is the adoption of green information systems (“green IS”), which are information systems employed to transform organizations and society into more sustainable entities. We trace the historical emergence of green IS as a corporate response to increasing demands for sustainability reporting, a key social innovation that environmental activists helped to create. Drawing upon extensive survey data from more than 400 U.S. firms, we then examine how managers perceived environmental activism in relation to broader field pressures for change and how their perceptions of both were related to green IS adoption. The results reveal that activists were more effective at influencing adoption indirectly by transforming organizational fields than by directly influencing corporate managers. Combined with the historical analysis, these findings suggest that CSI emerged out of ongoing interactions between activists, corporate managers, and other influential actors within a broader social innovation system. Activists helped to create conditions for social innovation, but corporations took the lead in developing new practices.

Social movement NGOs and the comprehensiveness of conflict mineral disclosures: evidence from global companies

“…H2: The comprehensiveness of disclosures on conflict minerals is enhanced by activist protest against corporate activities regarding conflict minerals. Carberry et al (2017) suggest that both activist protest and NGO collaboration impact organisational practices. While activist protests are more effective at influencing indirectly by transforming organizational fields (i.e., protest mostly create change at the field level), NGO collaborations directly influence corporate managers (i.e., NGO collaboration create change at the firm level).…”

Institutional change and the limitations of consumer activism

“…Activists should of course consider dependencies and act accordingly. See also Carberry et al (2019) on the potential interconnectedness of activists, organizational fields, and corporate managers. 5 There are empirical arguments for each of these messages that do not depend on philosophical position.…”

Coalitions and Public Action in the Reshaping of Corporate Responsibility: The Case of the Retail Banking Industry

“…In response to external pressure, industry may individually or collectively engage tactics such as lobbying or reporting; while government has means to enable or to obstruct civil society's ability to promote pressures for change (Clark 2011). Ultimately the power of either civil society or government to change industry-wide behaviour is limited (Dentchev et al 2017;Carberry et al 2017). For example, while civil society has developed persuasive (media campaigns, shareholder resolutions) and disruptive (boycotts, collective legal action) tactics, it lacks the ability to coerce firms directly into adopting ICR (Carberry et al 2017).…”

“…Ultimately the power of either civil society or government to change industry-wide behaviour is limited (Dentchev et al 2017;Carberry et al 2017). For example, while civil society has developed persuasive (media campaigns, shareholder resolutions) and disruptive (boycotts, collective legal action) tactics, it lacks the ability to coerce firms directly into adopting ICR (Carberry et al 2017). Governments at different levels often approach ICR through generic policy responses which are often fairly ineffective.…”