Corporate performance in ESG has received increased attention; however, the discussion on how digital development will affect corporate practice of ESG needs to be deepened. This paper discusses the impact of digital transformation on corporate ESG performance using multiple linear regressions with STATA 17.0 for 2707 companies listed in China A-shares in the period 2010–2021. Based on principal–agent theory, resource-based theory and signaling theory, the study finds that digital transformation can improve corporate ESG performance. From an external perspective, the contribution of digital transformation to ESG performance diminishes when environmental uncertainty increases; from an internal perspective, the positive effect of digital transformation on ESG performance is more significant in larger-scale enterprises. In addition, digital transformation will further enhance ESG performance by promoting green innovation, i.e., green innovation has a mediating role in the relationship between the two factors. The findings of the study introduce new thinking on the factors that influence corporate ESG performance, advance relevant research and provide important references for corporate managers and government departments who are concerned about ESG performance to make appropriate decisions.

In order to balance the relationship between economics, society and environment, the Chinese government has stated that China’s economy should shift from high-speed growth to high-quality development. Since agriculture is the foundation of the national economy, high-quality development of agriculture plays significant roles in the achievement of food security, social stability and environmental sustainability in China. In practice, the expansion of digital financial inclusion (DFI) seems to provide valuable opportunities for the development of high-quality agriculture. Nevertheless, in theory, the extant literature ignores exploration of the close relationships between DFI and high-quality agricultural development (HQAD). Hence, using Chinese provincial panel data from 2011 to 2020 and structural equation model (SEM) in STATA 16.0, this paper attempts to investigate whether and how DFI can enhance HQAD. Analysis reveals that (1) DFI can directly promote HQAD; (2) DFI can indirectly facilitate HQAD through the mediator of farmland transfer (FLT); (3) DFI can indirectly promote HQAD through the mediator of farmland mechanization level (FML); (4) compared with the benefits brought by “high-mechanization”, the benefits brought by “large-scale” farmland transfer policies are much greater. To our knowledge, our research is one of the first to investigate the direct and indirect effecting mechanisms of DFI’s influence on HQAD from the perspectives of farmland scale and farmland technology.

With the development of the country’s social and economic transformation, the topic of innovation and entrepreneurship has received widespread attention from society. However, from the current situation, due to the high uncertainty and challenges of entrepreneurship, China’s college graduates’ willingness to start their own business is generally low, and entrepreneurship policy, as a pioneering factor, has an important influence on college graduates’ willingness to start their own business. This study investigates college graduates in more than 20 representative cities, such as Shenyang, Xi’an, and Hangzhou, and examines the influence path and mechanism of entrepreneurship policy on entrepreneurship behavior based on MOA (Model of Attraction) model. This study used SPSS and AMOS to empirically analyze 288 valid questionnaires, verifying that there is a significant positive relationship between entrepreneurship policy, entrepreneurship willingness, and entrepreneurship behavior of college graduates. Entrepreneurship willingness plays a part in mediating the effect between entrepreneurship policy and entrepreneurship behavior, and the willingness to use entrepreneurship policy moderates the path of influence of entrepreneurship policy on entrepreneurship willingness. At the same time, it provides a reference for the promulgation of government entrepreneurship policies and the optimization of the implementation effect of entrepreneurship policy, provides suggestions for universities to improve entrepreneurship education, and has guiding significance for stimulating the entrepreneurship behavior of college graduates.

Sustainable teaching model innovation is an important way to build a new business discipline in Chinese university business school; however, its effective implementation faces various challenges. This paper conducts an exploratory study on the current status of teaching practices in the business school of L University using personal interviews and questionnaire surveys. This paper compares the main performance of three stages in the initiation of teaching activities, use of teaching methods, and evaluation of teaching effectiveness in the business school of L University. We used project-based learning (PBL) theory, modular teaching theory, and deliberate practice theory to analyze three problems in business school teaching practice: lack of linkage between business knowledge modules, lack of articulation between business theory and business practice, and lack of systematic thinking in course assessment and evaluation. Based on the analysis of the above problems, this paper proposes three countermeasures: to reconstruct the relationship of “course-knowledge-tool” with modular thinking, to strengthen the linkage between theory and practice with deliberate practice, and to promote systemic thinking with real problems assessment. This research is essential to cultivate new business talents with “business theory + business skills + system logic”, and to build a new business talent education system for the digital economy and new consumer development requirements.

Green innovation is an important step for enterprises in heavy polluting industries to break through the original crude development model and make the leap to sustainable operation. As important decision makers, executives’ home country identification affects their environmental awareness motivation and resource access advantage. Based on the dual perspective of conscious motivation and resource access, this paper aims to investigate the influence mechanism and boundary conditions of executives’ hometown identity on green innovation of enterprises in heavy polluting industries. Using a sample of listed companies in the heavy polluting industry in Shanghai and Shenzhen A-shares from 2013 to 2020, a theoretical exploration and an empirical analysis of this relationship is conducted based on the fusion of the framework of geographic dependency theory and social identity theory. This study finds that executive hometown identity promotes corporate green innovation and is more significant in private enterprises. The results of the mechanism test show that hometown identity mainly contributes to the implementation of green innovation in terms of both executive awareness motivation (environmental awareness) and corporate resource acquisition (government subsidies), but the latter is only significant in private enterprises. Further analysis reveals that the relationship between hometown identity and green innovation is weakened by executive corporate-associated capital, while government-associated capital shows an enhanced effect on the relationship, but only in the private enterprises; redundant resources play a positive moderating role in the relationship between executive hometown identity and corporate green innovation. The findings of this study provide a theoretical basis and managerial insights into the green innovation practices of firms in heavy polluting industries under the informal system.