Board Gender Diversity, Institutional Logics, and Sustainable Revenue Generation

Document Type

Article

Source of Publication

Business Strategy and the Environment

Publication Date

3-5-2026

Abstract

This study addresses a core puzzle in governance and sustainability research, namely, why the effects of board gender diversity (BGD) on environmental outcomes remain inconsistent. We develop the concept of a conversion gap, the distance between sustainability rhetoric and outcomes that capital markets and regulators treat as financially material, and we operationalize conversion using firms' green-revenue share. Using 9437 firm-year observations from the United States, China, and India from 2012 to 2023, we estimate panel models with year and industry fixed effects, firm-clustered inference, and a firm fixed-effects specification. BGD is positively associated with green revenue on average, and this association is stronger among firms with higher Transition Pathway Initiative (TPI) management quality. The BGD–green-revenue relation also varies across national settings, consistent with institutional differences shaping the conversion of board-level intent into commercialization outcomes. Overall, the findings reposition governance effectiveness around substantive, market-facing outcomes and highlight complementarity between board composition and credible transition governance in closing the conversion gap.

ISSN

0964-4733

Publisher

Wiley

Disciplines

Business

Keywords

boardroom gender diversity, green revenues, institutional logics, transition governance, Transition Pathway Initiative

Scopus ID

105032141378

Indexed in Scopus

yes

Open Access

no

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