The influence of the external and internal environments of multinational enterprises on the sustainability commitment of their subsidiaries: A cluster analysis

This paper analyses corporate sustainability (CS) in multinational enterprises (MNEs) and, in particular, the way the commitment of subsidiaries depends on different configurations of internal and external influence exerted by stakeholders, institutions and corporate headquarters. The study is based on primary data collected through surveys sent to subsidiary managers in the hotel industry in 19 different countries in the world. The findings of a principal component analysis and a cluster analysis show four different clusters of firm behaviors, depending on the external stimuli and the internal obstacles subsidiaries face when implementing CS. These may actually facilitate or hinder its implementation. Results show that some subsidiaries act proactively towards CS, overcoming objective difficulties, whereas others appear to be sluggish, since they feel no pressure to implement such activities, even though they are increasingly important in the current scenario. This paper contributes to the literature on CS in international business and also provides practical recommendations to help MNEs achieve better CS results through a more effective implementation of sustainability activities by their subsidiaries.