A congruence model of organizational design suggests that direct reporting relationships
between plant managers and environmental quality managers, monetary incentives
for environmental performance, and coordination between environmental quality
managers and business strategists reduce plant-level toxic emissions. We tested
these relationships in a large sample of U.S. electronics facilities. Only a link between
plant manager compensation and environmental performance reduced emissions.
Subsequent analyses support a reverse causality, suggesting organizational characteristics
result from (rather than cause) emissions performance and that firms remain
reactive on environmental issues. These findings confront theories of environmental
management and congruence with provocative questions, which we discuss in depth.