The multinational and the legitimation of sustainable development

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) recently promulgated by the United Nations General Assembly provide an opportunity to assess the potential contributions of multinational enterprises to sustainability initiatives. This article seeks to promote understanding of the context within which multinationals will or can decide to participate in such initiatives by adopting a legitimacy perspective. When viewed from the perspective of organizational legitimacy, the extent to which a multinational adopts a sustainability agenda is likely to depend on its stakeholder network and the balance of the network’s variety of interests and beliefs. The article discusses current and prospective multinational activities that support the SDGs while also bolstering organizational legitimacy, and concludes with questions for future research.