Why Some Firms Go Greener Than Others: The Mediating Force of Learning and the Moderating Role of Family Ownership

Abstract

Based on the natural resource-based theory (NRBV hereafter), this study empirically investigates the impact of green technology innovation (GTI hereafter) and organizational culture (OC hereafter) on predicting green business performance (GBP hereafter) in family-owned SMEs, with the mediating role of organizational learning capability (OLC hereafter). The present study proposes the moderating role of family ownership between GTI, OC, and GP. The present study considered the SMEs currently operating in the manufacturing sector of Pakistan. SMEs were considered as units of analysis, and 411 SMEs were considered as a sample for testing of hypotheses proposed based on research questions. The empirical findings of the present study indicate that GTI, OC, OLC, and family-ownership are significantly and positively linked with the GP in case direct relationship. Moreover, the results indicate that OLC bridges the relationship between GTI, OC, and GP. In addition to that, family ownership significantly and positively influences the GP, however, it marginally moderates the relationship between GTI and GP. First, the present study contributes to existing literature in the domain of environmental performance underpinning NRBV theory in the domain of family-owned SMEs by empirically documenting the relationship between GTI, OC, and GP. Secondly, the present study is intended to contribute to underpinning theory and existing with mediating role of OLC between GTI, OC, and GP. Thirdly, the present study proposed the moderating role of family-ownership between GTI, OC, and GP in family-owned SMEs. The present study outlines the implications for managers, SMEs owners, and policymakers.