Corporate social innovation by multinationals: A framework for future research

Abstract

Although multinational enterprises (MNEs) can exacerbate inequality within and across nations, they can also engage in social innovation to contribute positively to SDGs. Their social initiatives addressing societal challenges, i.e., Corporate Social Innovations (CSIs), can benefit both the firm and the society. However, with increasing pressures on MNEs to demonstrate how they meet grand societal challenges, we need to know more about how MNEs pursue their CSIs. By reviewing 34 articles in 18 journals over a 22-year period, we establish what shapes CSI by social change agents, and the conditions for, and consequences of such innovations in MNEs. The review demonstrates that CSI by MNEs is triggered by institutional contradictions or a market opportunity, shaped by (in)formal resources and skills deployed to generate ideas, piloted through multistakeholder engagement, and legitimated through showcasing and framing to generate impact that contributes to SDGs. Our findings set an agenda for future research on the links between CSI activities and different CSI stages and the complex dynamics arising in MNE strategies aimed at reconciling opposing institutional logics and the impact of MNE home institutional contexts.