This research examines the characteristics of the age demographic of a top management team (TMT) as drivers of a firm's environmental management (EM) strategy comprising compliance-only and beyond-compliance initiatives. Using a matched sample of publicly listed firms in Kinder, Lydenberg, and Domini and Bloomberg, panel data regression techniques on a unique dataset of 3,251 firm-year observations suggest that a link does exist. Driven by a desire for legacy and a preference for risk-averse decisions, aging TMTs will support beyond-compliance initiatives. On the other hand, age diversity is expected to enhance the innovative potential of a TMT for solving pressing compliance-related environmental issues. The study finds that aging TMTs support beyond-compliance as compared to compliance-only EM strategies. TMT age diversity, though helpful in developing compliance-only initiatives, is not instrumental in driving beyond-compliance initiatives. The study highlights the challenges in developing a comprehensive EM strategy suggesting paths for future research.
