Despite considerable attention being devoted to the antecedents of ESG, existing research has overlooked the pivotal role of CEO reputation in determining a firm's ESG performance. We propose that ESG performance is influenced by reputable CEOs’ impression management motive to maintain their status as celebrity. Utilizing a longitudinal data set of A-share listed firms from 2014 to 2020, we find that firms led by highly reputable CEOs demonstrate superior ESG performance compared to those led by less reputable counterparts, particularly in contexts featured by uncertainty and munificence. Heterogeneity analyses reveal that CEOs with political connections and those in state-owned enterprises (SOEs) are likely to place a higher value on their reputation. Our findings provide valuable insights for firms aiming to enhance ESG performance.

中文翻译：

---

在不同管理层自由裁量权背景下，首席执行官声誉对 ESG 绩效的影响


尽管人们对 ESG 的前因给予了相当大的关注，但现有的研究忽视了 CEO 声誉在决定公司 ESG 绩效方面的关键作用。我们提出 ESG 绩效受到知名 CEO 为保持名人地位而产生的印象管理动机的影响。利用 2014 年至 2020 年 A 股上市公司的纵向数据集，我们发现，与声誉较低的 CEO 领导的公司相比，由声誉较低的 CEO 领导的公司表现出卓越的 ESG 表现，尤其是在充满不确定性和慷慨的情况下。异质性分析显示，具有政治关系的 CEO 和国有企业 （SOE） 的 CEO 可能会更看重他们的声誉。我们的调查结果为旨在提高 ESG 绩效的公司提供了宝贵的见解。