The role of sustainable development and innovation on firm performance

In the new economic scenario, characterized by a rapidly changing environment, companies are pushed into seeking new responses in order to survive and succeed. Companies are looking for new activities to improve their economic performance. Furthermore, these activities have been focused on innovation and/or socially responsible aspects. This paper analyzes the relationship between corporate social responsibility (CSR), innovation and its effect on performance. Especially, it shows if innovation has a fundamental role in the development of socially responsible practices or if social issues are responsible for practices that lead to greater innovation and, consequently, to greater performance. Data were collected from a sample of 121 Spanish wineries. The results show that CSR and innovation act as a mediator depending on the measurement of performance used. CSR, specifically, acts as a mediator between innovation and objective performance. However, managers perceive that the relationship between CSR and performance improves through innovation activities.