Interplay of national and firm environmental, social, and governance performances: Reshaping multinational enterprises' employer attractiveness across home and host countries

Abstract

In this study, we emphasize the pivotal role of national environmental, social, and governance (ESG) performance, encompassing both host and home countries, in shaping the implications of firm-specific ESG performance for the attractiveness of multinational enterprises (MNEs) as preferred employers. Our research puts forth three hypotheses. First, we propose that superior ESG performance by MNEs will exhibit a positive relationship with their perceived appeal as employers. Second, we theorize that higher national ESG performance in the home country will amplify the positive relationship between an MNE's ESG performance and its attractiveness as an employer. Lastly, we posit that superior national ESG performance in the host country will similarly strengthen the positive association between an MNE's ESG performance and its desirability as an employer. The empirical data robustly supports these hypotheses.