Does it Pay for SMEs to be Good and Green? : Evidence on the impact of CSR on Financial Performance in the contextual setting of European and Asian SMEs

Sammanfattning: Purpose - This paper goes beyond whether or not CSR is positive or negative related to financial performance in SMEs. The aim is to explore, analyze and highlight the impact of both the social and the environmental dimension of CSR on SMEs financial performance in Europe and Asia. Furthermore, the study investigates to what extent European SMEs and Asian SMEs differ in regards to the relationship. Additional effort will also be given to different categories within each dimension. Method - The GRI framework is adapted and modified from Chen et al. (2015A; 2015B) with purpose to conduct content analysis of CSR reports, in order to explore the relationship between the social and environmental dimension of CSR and financial performance of European and Asian SMEs. Findings/ Value - The paper finds that there is a positive impact of both the social and the environmental dimension of CSR on SMEs financial performance. In addition, the social dimension of CSR indicates to affect the relationship the most. Furthermore, the research provides evidence that CSR in European SMEs to a higher degree impact their financial performance. The findings should be valuable for researchers, managers and stakeholders. Originality - To the best of our knowledge, this is the first paper that uses the GRI framework to provide evidence of both the social and the environmental dimensions of CSR and the relationship with financial performance in European and Asian SMEs.