The Impact of Corporate Sustainability Performance on Economic Value Added Over the Corporate Life Cycle

Today, corporate sustainability as a value and ethical behavior is related to firms' decisions on issues such as human and environmental resource management, occupational health, and social relations.According to the life cycle theory, firms behave differently in the face of society and achieve to sustainable development at each stage of the life cycle, due to the resources at their disposal. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the level of corporate sustainability performance(CSP) at different stages of the corporate life cycle(CLC) and also the impact of CSP on economic value added(EVA) during the CLC stages.

This study is the descriptive research and is type of post-event research.This study is also applied research in terms of purpose. In this study we surveyed 91 companies listed in Tehran Stock Exchange during 2009 to 2017. In this study, we used ANCOVA and LS regression to test the hypotheses.

The results indicate that the level of CSP varies at different stages of the CLC, and CSP reaches a peak in the maturity stage of CLC.On the other hand, the results showed that CSP has a significant positive effect on EVA in growth and maturity stages.

According to the research findings, firms engage in corporate sustainability activities to create competitive advantage, gain social legitimacy, and optimal use of resources when they reach the stage of growth and maturity.

The result of this study is that by examining the relationship between CSP and EVA over the life cycle of the company, it provides valuable insights into the development of the theoretical foundations of CSP and the usefulness of CSP in the path of corporate value creation.The innovation aspect of this Study is the application of firm life cycle theory to CSP.