Theoretical contribution

The environmental management systems (EMS) were found to affect companies’ financial sources and also the subjective view of their financial performance. Based on the linear re-gression analysis, applying of an EMS was found to provide an average 63-thousand-euro higher annual revenues in companies, but in three-years-time, the change in revenues on or-ganizational level was not affected by the EMS. Therefore, hypothesis 1a, Environmental management systems have a positive effect towards operating revenue and hypothesis 1c, En-vironmental management systems have a positive effect towards financial performance were affirmed but hypothesis 1b, Environmental management systems have a positive effect to-wards change in operating revenue, was rejected.

As the results of the main effect indicated, the IT capabilities did not affect environmental management systems (EMS) and change in operating revenue, and hypotheses 2b to 5b were rejected. Contradictory findings were that EMS affected positively on subjective financial performance but none of the IT capabilities moderated this effect. Therefore, hypotheses 2c to 5c were rejected while 1c was affirmed. The results indicate that the different IT capabilities do not moderate environmental responsibility and subjective financial performance.

Set procedures for collecting customer information from online sources had the strongest ef-fect towards EMS and operating revenue, as the model explained 14% of the variance and the moderation effect estimated higher operating revenues than other moderator values. Also, the value of these IT capabilities together with the adaptation of environmental management sys-tems (EMS) defined the financial outcome, as better performance on IT capabilities and EMS prospected higher annual revenues. With all statistically significant moderator values, the lowest value of the IT capability did not explain the variance. This phenomenon is most likely in relation to the non-linear development of adaption to EMS and revenue when the level of IT capability is low. This effect supports the research outcome, as the low levels of IT capa-bilities are non-moderators of EMS and operating revenue, while medium and high levels of IT capabilities are positive moderators of EMS and operating revenue. In another words, when the IT capability is low, it does not moderate environmental responsibility and operating revenue, as when IT capability is average or high, it moderates positively environmental re-sponsibility and operating revenue. Based on the research outcomes, hypothesis 2a,

Knowledge about IT-based innovations moderate environmental management systems and operating revenue, hypothesis 3a, IT capability in collecting and analyzing market infor-mation moderate environmental management systems and operating revenue and hypothesis 4a, Set procedures for collecting customer information from online sources moderate environ-mental management systems and operating revenue can be affirmed but further research should be implemented to produce information of other financial assets.

Hypothesis 5a, budgeting funds for new information technology moderate environmental man-agement systems and operating revenue produced different results than other IT capability di-mensions. The research model explained 8% of the variance but there was no moderation ef-fect. Nevertheless, the environmental management systems (EMS) had a positive effect to-wards the operating revenue. This model supported the results of the regression analyses as the EMS had a positive effect on operating revenue. Based on these results hypothesis 5a,

Budgeting funds for new information technology moderate environmental management sys-tems and operating revenue, is rejected. It is evident that environmental management syssys-tems prospect better financial performance due to regression analysis results, where adaptation to EMS indicated both higher operating revenue as well as better subjective financial perfor-mance. The results of this research support previous findings of a positive effect of CER to-wards CFP.

As Webb and Schlemmer (2008) argued, the raw materials of IT have become a utility while management of IT resources has become more relevant and it can deliver sustainable competi-tive advantage in companies. Therefore, a resource-based view for IT adoption in firms was developed and the sources for competitive advantage included IT-related skills and resources that create an inimitable, valuable, rare and non-substitutable IT capability. (Bharadwaj 2000.) These views support the research outcomes, as the IT-related skills and resources seem to de-liver competitive advantage and investing in the raw materials does not affect in a same way.

Kmieciak et al (2012) found similar results, where IT knowledge had a positive effect on companies’ subjective performance measures that were correlated with the objective perfor-mance measures while Webb and Schlemmer (2008) found out that IT did not have any direct impacts on corporate performance, but they found complementarity with other strategic as-sets. These results reflect the findings, as the effect of IT capabilities was in relation to the strategic choice of the environmental management system and therefore affected positively on corporate performance.

Interesting about these findings is that the budgeting funds for new information technology correlated the strongest towards operating revenue and environmental management systems (EMS) out of all of the IT capability dimensions. As it was stated in the theoretical founda-tion, researchers, such as Huang and Liu (2005), Mata et al (1995) and Tippins and Sohi (2003), claimed that information technology in terms of hardware and software is not a com-petitive advantage of a corporation, since they are easily duplicated, these results provide a similar outcome. Also, McAfee (2005) defined IT hardware, software and networks as raw materials whilst value-adding information technology were finished goods. If a company in-vests a significant amount of funds for new hardware and software, it does not gain competi-tive advantage through those investments, and therefore funding new hardware and software is a non-moderator of corporate environmental responsibility and financial performance. On the other hand, knowledge about IT-based innovations and capability in collecting and

analyzing market and customer information are intangible assets of a company for their intan-gible and inimitable nature that are related to the culture and skills of the company (Bha-radwaj et al 1999). Through these advantages a company may gain competitive advantage and a competitive advantage moderates the resources of companies.