The effects of green transformational leadership on adoption of environmentally proactive strategies: The mediating role of green engagement

Abstract

To explore key antecedents of environmentally proactive strategies, this work uses upper echelons theory to examine a novel concept-green engagement with its antecedents (green transformational leadership) and consequence (environmentally proactive strategies). This work employed a potential growth curve model with 501 CEOs and top management teams of technology manufacturing businesses in Greater China at three times over eight months to analyze the theoretical model. The results of this work showed that the green transformational leadership of CEOs significantly predicts positive changes of green engagement of top management teams, which consequently predicts environmentally proactive strategies. These findings provide theoretical insights for the field of environmental development that can advance the literature on environmentally proactive strategies.