Fostering sustainable logistics businesses: the role of innovation ecosystems and institutional contexts for logistics firms in China

Purpose Drawing on institution embeddedness and the resource-based view, the authors develop a theoretical framework and empirically examine how intra-national innovation ecosystems and environmental institutions impact logistics service providers' (LSPs) technological innovation (TI) and green practices. Design/methodology/approach The authors test the theoretical framework based on survey data of 328 Chinese LSPs. Archival datasets complement the survey data. Findings The research reveals that intra-national institutional forces of formal and informal environment-related institutions can mitigate LSPs' reliance on their firm-specific advantages when engaging in TI and green practices. Results from a three-way interaction indicate that intra-national innovation ecosystems positively moderate the effects of environmental institutions. Research limitations/implications The research has three critical implications. First, the study reveals the contingency role of intra-national environment-related institutions and innovation ecosystems in shaping green logistics. Second, the study finds new results about the roles of informal environmental institutions. Finally, intra-national innovation ecosystems can override environmental institutions in influencing the green practices of LSPs. Originality/value Taking a unique angle of institution embeddedness coupled with the resource-based view, the authors examined how intra-national ecosystems and environmental institutions impact LSPs' TI and green practices.