Research on the Impact of Executives with Overseas Backgrounds on Corporate ESG Performance: Evidence from Chinese A-Share Listed Companies

Lele Feng () and Zhiqiang Ma ()
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Lele Feng: School of Management, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang 212013, China
Zhiqiang Ma: School of Management, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang 212013, China

Sustainability, 2025, vol. 17, issue 17, 1-19

Abstract: As sustainable development gains importance, corporate ESG performance has become a key factor in investment decisions and long-term business growth. Drawing on upper echelon theory and stakeholder theory, this study examines the impact of executives with overseas backgrounds on ESG performance using data from A-share listed companies in Shanghai and Shenzhen from 2010 to 2022. The findings show that: (1) Executives with overseas backgrounds significantly enhance ESG performance; (2) this effect operates through three main channels—promoting corporate green technology innovation, improving the quality of corporate internal control, and enhancing the level of corporate risk-taking—while digital transformation positively moderates the relationship; (3) the effect is more pronounced in non-polluting, manufacturing, capital-intensive, and technology-intensive firms. This study clarifies the internal mechanisms by which executive backgrounds influence ESG outcomes and offers insights into enhancing ESG practices to support China’s “dual carbon” goals.

Keywords: ESG; overseas background; senior executives; green innovation; internal control; risk taking; digitalization (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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