From Stakeholder Pressure to Strategic Advantage: A Framework of Achieving Environment Sustainability Through Pathway of Carbon Neutrality
通过访谈制造业专家，识别出客户、竞争者、股东和高管等利益相关者推动企业通过绿色创新实现碳中和的五大驱动因素，并基于利益相关者理论和制度理论提出了一个支持框架，帮助企业管理者制定碳中和战略。
ABSTRACT Businesses are increasingly striving to reduce their carbon footprint, with carbon offsetting emerging as a viable pathway towards achieving carbon neutrality. Such efforts signify a demonstrated commitment to fostering environmental sustainability and contributing to a more sustainable future. Many countries have pledged to become carbon neutral in order to prevent climate change, but very little is understood about the micro‐level influences. Nevertheless, a critical question remains: To what extent can carbon neutrality be achieved without the active involvement of stakeholders? Current scholarly literature offers limited discussion on this issue, indicating a gap that warrants further exploration. Therefore, the study aims to investigate the key influence of stakeholders on businesses tending to achieve carbon neutrality via the use of green innovative practices in their pursuit of environmental sustainability. The semistructured interviews were conducted with the manufacturing industries' experts. Rigorously, a qualitative analysis was employed, and the five major drivers were identified based on 11 subthemes for carbon neutrality and green innovation, that is, ‘ customer enforcement ,’ ‘sustainable business value,’ ‘ potential benefits ,’ ‘ environmental legitimacy ’ and ‘ competitive pressure .’ Customers and competitors were the most influential external stakeholders. Shareholders and top management with intrinsic environmental values, being internal stakeholders, played pivotal roles in a proactive move to carbon neutrality and green innovation when there was limited regulatory pressure. The finding shows that the potential benefits of transitioning to carbon neutrality not only minimize waste and pollution but also lead to financial gains and a better image if implemented effectively, and the early movers/investors also believe in the long‐term economic benefits. Based on the research findings, a proposition‐based support framework was proposed by stakeholder and institutional theory to guide firms' managers in transitioning towards carbon neutrality goals or climate neutrality policies aligned with Sustainable Development Goal 13 (SDG 13).