How Green Information Technology Standards and Strategies Influence Performance: Role of Environment, Cost and Dual Focus

Abstract

How do green information technology (IT) standards and organizational strategies jointly influence firms’ environmental sustainability and financial performance? This is an important question, as many firms adopt green IT standards without considering the fit with their organizational strategies and therefore face uncertain or mixed outcomes. We address this question by developing a theory-driven conceptual framework and collecting archival data on green IT standards and green IT organizational strategies from more than 230 firms in India. Our analysis yields two main findings. First, an environment-focused green IT organizational strategy has a stronger positive moderating effect than a cost-focused green IT organizational strategy on the association between green IT standards and sustainability-monitoring capability. Similarly, an environment-focused green IT organizational strategy has a stronger positive moderating effect than a cost-focused green IT organizational strategy on the association between green IT standards and financial profit. Second, a dual-focused green IT organizational strategy positively moderates the association between green IT standards and profit. This study provides a theoretical explanation and empirical evidence to support the salience of green IT standards and complementary organizational strategies in advancing environmental sustainability and financial performance objectives. It also informs managerial decision-making about how firms can choose the appropriate green IT organizational strategy to enhance sustainability-monitoring capability and the financial benefits of green IT standards.