I ACKNOWLEDGEMENT For the successful completion of this thesis, I would like to extend my sincere thanks to: Respectful lecturers of University of Economics Ho Chi Minh City, who have transferred to me valuable knowledge during my course, especially PhD. Nguyen Thi Nguyet Que, who has always instructed me to fully completion of this thesis Secondly, I would like to thank my colleagues who are from enterprises in province of Dongnai, Binh Duong and Hochiminh city for helping me to collect the data for this thesis Thirdly, I would like to thank my classmates of the eMBA course, University of Economics Ho Chi Minh City for kindly helping me in data analysis Although the author has tried best for this thesis, the errors still may have taken place. Therefore, the author is looking forward to the review as well as valuable feedbacks from everyone so that this thesis can be better Nguyen Anh Khoa Ho Chi Minh, Octorber 22 nd 2012 TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com II COMMITMENT I would like to commit that this thesis, “The impact of environmental innovations on firm’s competitive advantage –The practice in Vietnam”, was scientifically achieved through my independent and serious studies. The data was collected in reality with clear origin.
In addition, the data has never been released in any menu Nguyen Anh Khoa TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com III TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENT. II TABLE OF CONTENTS. III LIST OF FIGURE .2 Research Issues, Objectives & Questions .4 Significance of study .5 Structure of study. 5 Chapter 2: LITERATURE REVIEW.1 Definition of environmental innovation .2 Review of previous studies on environmental innovation .1: antecedent variables of environmental innovations .2: environmental innovations and dependent variables .1 Influential factors on environmental innovations .2 Impact of environmental innovations on organization’s outcomes.3 Development of theoretical model and research hypothesis .1 The influence of environmental regulations on environmental innovations .2 Environmental innovations and managerial environmental concerns .3 Environmental innovations and competitive advantage of enterprise.
26 TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com IV Figure 2. 27 Chapter 3 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY .1 Scale of managerial environmental concerns (MEC) .1 Scale of managerial environmental concerns .2 Scale of environmental regulations (ER). Scale of environmental regulations .3 Measurement of environmental innovations variables .3 Scale of environmental product innovation (EPD) .4 Scale of environmental product innovation (EPS) .4 Measurement of firm’s competitive advantage(FCA) .5 Scale of firm’s competitive advantage (FCA) .4 Data analysis techniques .6 Specification for cronbach alpha and EFA method. 35 Chapter 4 DATA ANALYSIS .2 Main study sample profile .1 Main study profile .3 Evaluating the scales .1 Cronbach alpha result of main survey.2 Cronbach alpha result of main survey.
39 TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.2 EFA result of main survey.3a KMO and Bartlett's Test .3b Total Variance Explained .3c Rotated Component Matrixa. KMO and Bartlett's Test. Total Variance Explained. Rotated Component Matrixa .1 Normality assumption test .5 Normality assumption test .6a Pearson correlation between each pairs of variables (ER,MEC), (ER,EPD), (MEC,EPD) .6b MLR result of hypothesis 1a, 2a (Model summary) .6c MLR result of hypothesis 1a, 2a (ANOVA) .6d MLR result of hypothesis 1a, 2a (Coefficient) .7a Pearson correlation between each pairs of variables: MEC, EPS, ER .7b MLR result of hypothesis 1b, 2b (Model summary).7c MLR result of hypothesis 1b, 2b (ANOVA) .7d MLR result of hypothesis 1b, 2b (Coefficient) .8a Pearson correlation between each pairs of variables (EPD, EPS, FCA), .8b MLR result of hypothesis 3a, 3b (Model summary) .8c MLR result of hypothesis 3a, 3b (ANOVA).8d MLR result of hypothesis 3a, 3b (Coefficient) .5 Testing regression assumption on heteroskedasticity.
56 TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com VI Figure 4.1 Regression result of theoretical model. 56 Chapter 5 DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION .2 Discussion of Findings .4 Limitations and recommendations for future research. 65 APPENDIX II- RESULT OF CRONBACH ALPHA .1 – Cronbach alpha of environmental regulations (ER) .2 – Cronbach alpha of managerial environmental concerns (MEC) .3 – Cronbach alpha of environmental product innovations (EPD) .4 – Cronbach alpha of environmental process innovations (EPS) .5 – Cronbach alpha of firm’s competitive advantage (FCA). 73 APPENDIX III – EFA RESULT .1 –EFA result of 1st running .2 –EFA result of 2nd running&histograms.
79 LIST OF TABLES Table 2.1: antecedent variables of environmental innovations .2: environmental innovations and dependent variables .1 Scale of managerial environmental concerns. Scale of environmental regulations. 31 TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com VII Table 3.3 Scale of environmental product innovation (EPD) .4 Scale of environmental product innovation (EPS) .5 Scale of firm’s competitive advantage (FCA) .6 Specification for cronbach alpha and EFA method .1 Main study profile .2 Cronbach alpha result of main survey .3a KMO and Bartlett's Test .3b Total Variance Explained .3c Rotated Component Matrixa. KMO and Bartlett's Test.
Total Variance Explained. Rotated Component Matrixa .5 Normality assumption test .6a Pearson correlation between each pairs of variables (ER,MEC), (ER,EPD), (MEC,EPD) .6b MLR result of hypothesis 1a, 2a (Model summary) .6c MLR result of hypothesis 1a, 2a (ANOVA) .6d MLR result of hypothesis 1a, 2a (Coefficient) .7a Pearson correlation between each pairs of variables: MEC, EPS, ER .7b MLR result of hypothesis 1b, 2b (Model summary).7c MLR result of hypothesis 1b, 2b (ANOVA) .7d MLR result of hypothesis 1b, 2b (Coefficient) .8a Pearson correlation between each pairs of variables (EPD, EPS, FCA), .8b MLR result of hypothesis 3a, 3b (Model summary) .8c MLR result of hypothesis 3a, 3b (ANOVA).8d MLR result of hypothesis 3a, 3b (Coefficient). 53 TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com VIII LIST OF FIGURE Figure 2.1 Regression result of theoretical model. 56 TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com 1 ABSTRACT As environmental issues becomes a global matter, enterprises in the world also face a real challenge of reducing harmful impact from manufacturing activities under pressure of international and domestic environmental regulations.
In that scenario, what companies mostly concern about is the relationship between environmental improvement activities and the competitiveness of enterprise as they have to incur the extra cost from environmental activities. By regression analysis of 137 samples from enterprises in southern Vietnam, this paper concludes that the competitiveness of enterprises is positively impacted by environmental process innovations. In addition, for the environmental innovations to be fully implemented, the government regulation should comprise more stringent requirements of product and process to be environment-friendly. Besides, enterprises also should care about the impulse role of management in accelerating the environmental activities in company TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com 2 Chapter 1 INTRODUCTION 1.1 Introduction The worst flood in Thailand history in 2011, the longer winter in Europe in 2011, the Katrina storm in America in 2005… may have partially expressed the bad consequences from harmful impact of waste from daily production of enterprises in the world.
Moreover, these natural calamities also mean that the current number of environmental protection is not enough to preserve the environment. Along with the world, Vietnam is also suffered the natural disaster yearly as a result of harmful discharge into environment. Although the “Law on environment protection” was issued in year 2005, many corporations also violate this law as pouring untreated waste into the environment in later years (example: Vedan in 2008, Sonadezi in 2011). Besides, Vietnam has also become an ideal destination to invest in recent years which would consequently make a major impact into environment.
Thus, exploring the relationship between environmental innovations and firm’s competitive advantage becomes a crucial matter in current situation due to the following reasons: Firstly, the result of the relationship between environmental innovations and firm’s competitive advantage can help partially explain the internal motives that push enterprises to violate the environmental laws in recent years Secondly, in the case that it is a positive relationship, it creates impetus for enterprises to implement environmental activities as they have to obey the environmental laws TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com 3 Thirdly, from the result of this paper, law maker can evaluate the appropriateness of current regulated items then they may complement or modify to be more suitable with current situations in Vietnam 1.2 Research Issues, Objectives & Questions This paper aims to evaluate the impact of environmental innovations on competitive advantage of enterprise in the situation that environmental innovations are under the pressure of regulation and managerial environmental concerns. Specifically, this paper evaluates: (1) The impact of environmental regulations on environmental product and process innovation (2) The impact of managerial environmental concerns on environmental product and process innovation (3)The impact of environmental product and process innovation on firm’s competitive advantage 1.3 Research methodology This paper is implemented through two steps: (1) in-depth interview and (2) main survey (quantitative). The in-depth interview is carried out by face-to-face discussion with employees and managers. Next, the main survey is implemented through convenient sampling by sending hard copy and email to employees and managers.
Data collection is implemented in province of Binh Duong, Dongnai and Hochiminh city where most companies concentrate in southern Vietnam For data analysis, Cronbach alpha and EFA is firstly used to verify the scales of variables. Thereafter, multi-linear regression method is applied to TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com 4 evaluate the theoretical model and research hypothesis. In this paper, the software SPSS (Version 16.4 Significance of study From the theoretical perspective, this paper firstly investigates the relationship between managerial environmental concerns and environmental regulation with environmental innovations in enterprise. Secondly, the relationship between environmental innovations and firm’s competitive advantage is also inquired.
Thus, these results can be used to complement the theory of environmental innovations for developing economy, like Vietnam In addition, this paper also has many practical meanings: Firstly, the result from this paper helps enterprises more understand about the role of managerial environmental concerns and environmental regulation as impacting factors on environmental innovations in enterprises. Consequently, enterprises can speed up the environmental activities to preserve the earth and surrounding atmosphere Secondly, the relationship between environmental innovation and firm’s competitive advantage leads the enterprise to a new outlook of the environmental activities which are no longer burdened-cost activities, but a new tool to increase the competitiveness of company. Finally, the result from this paper helps policy makers to grasp the impact of environmental laws on enterprise. On this basis, policy makers can complement or modify the current items in the law so as to be more suitable and to play an encourage role to accelerate environmental activities in enterprise TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.5 Structure of study This study is divided into five chapters: Chapter 1 presents the overview of this study.
Chapter 2 introduces literature review and theoretical model development. Chapter 3 presents research methodology which aims to verify scale and evaluate the hypothesis. Chapter 4 outlines the result of analyzing multi-linear regression model. Chapter 5 presents discussion of research result, implication and further research.
TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com 6 Chapter 2: LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 Definition of environmental innovation In the process of manufacturing, enterprises have contributed a great amount of toxic materials, hazardous waste, and noxious carbon into environment. In order to reduce the impact of these pollutions, environmental innovations is defined as activities that aim to change of processes, techniques, practices, systems and products so as to lower the harmful impact of manufacturing activities on environment (Rennings et al, 2004). Ediadat et al, (2008) also suggests the environmental innovations as a class of manufacturing practices which aims to reduce the using of resources and preventing pollution Porter & van der Linde (Fall 1995) have other contribution for environmental innovation when classifying them into two main activities: process innovations and product innovations, specifically: Firstly, products are forced to be innovated in the way that creates better-performing, higher quality, higher resale or safer characteristics, in other words, making the lifetime of product longer. Moreover, the innovated products must have lower product cost per unit and lower disposal cost from users.