Scientific and Technological Talent Comparative Advantage and Corporate Sustainable Development Performance: Green Innovation as a Mediator and Local Government Attention as a Moderator

While prior studies on corporate sustainable development have largely focused on firm-level governance and internal resource allocation, limited attention has been paid to the role of regional talent endowments in shaping firms’ sustainability outcomes. To fill this gap, this study investigates whether and how the scientific and technological talent comparative advantage affects corporate sustainable development performance. Drawing on the resource-based view, comparative advantage theory, and the attention-based view, we argue that regional talent advantages enhance firm sustainability by stimulating green innovation and that this effect is further contingent on local government attention. Using panel data on Chinese A-share listed firms from 2013 to 2023, we empirically test the direct, mediating, and moderating relationships. The results show that the scientific and technological talent comparative advantage significantly improves corporate sustainable development performance, and this finding remains robust across a series of endogeneity and robustness tests. Further analysis indicates that green technological innovation and green management innovation serve as important mediating channels through which regional talent advantages promote firm sustainability. In addition, local government attention to new quality productive forces positively moderates this relationship. This study contributes to the literature in three ways. First, it extends the sustainable development literature by shifting the analytical focus from firm-specific human capital to regional scientific and technological talent endowments. Second, it uncovers the mediating role of green innovation in linking regional talent advantages to firm sustainability outcomes. Third, it highlights the contingent role of local government attention in shaping the effectiveness of regional talent advantages. These findings provide important implications for policymakers seeking to align talent and innovation policies, as well as for firms aiming to strengthen sustainable development capabilities through regional resource leverage.