From value creation to organizational resilience: a multi-level review of ESG and firm performance

Abstract

While environmental, social, and governance (ESG) practices are increasingly recognized as central to corporate strategy, the literature is characterized by divergent findings regarding whether ESG operates as a value-creating strategic asset or a compliance-driven cost center. To address this divergence, the study synthesizes and extends current knowledge on the multi-level dynamics and strategic choices that shape ESG adoption and its outcomes. Guided by the SPAR-4-SLR protocol, the study evaluates 378 documents using a triangulated, multi-method approach that integrates bibliographic coupling and keyword co-occurrence with an in-depth qualitative content analysis of the resulting thematic clusters. Moving beyond surface-level correlations, it identifies the conditions under which ESG investments create value rather than impose cost. It further clarifies how leadership characteristics and governance attributes reprioritize ESG to build organizational resilience during external shocks and geopolitical instability, a timely yet underexplored concern. The review also offers guidance for practice, indicating how managers might tailor resource allocation across ESG pillars and how integrating ESG with core business objectives can reduce information asymmetry and strengthen the capacity to recover from crises. Integrating these insights, the study develops a novel, proposition-driven conceptual framework grounded in testable propositions, providing a structured agenda for future empirical research and strategic decision-making.