Despite the burgeoning interest in environmental, social and governance (ESG) ratings, current results regarding ESG rating-performance relationship are inconclusive. Since what affects this disagreement is ambiguous, we examine how internal control weaknesses (ICW) may affect the relationship between ESG rating and a firm's performance. In fact, employing a sample of French listed firms during the period between 2012 and 2018, we predicted and found that both ICW and ESG ratings have a positive and significant influence on a firm's performance. In addition, the results indicate that ICW negatively and significantly moderates the relationship between ESG ratings and corporate performance. Moreover, the robustness of the results is checked through the generalized method of moments regression. We also offer theoretical and practical implications to drive policymakers and businesses to assure sustainable development. We expect that our study can help managers to strengthen their internal resources, such as the internal control (IC) and ESG ratings to improve a firm's performance.

中文翻译：

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环境、社会和治理评级与公司绩效：内部控制质量的调节作用

尽管人们对环境、社会和治理 (ESG) 评级的兴趣日益浓厚，但目前关于 ESG 评级与绩效关系的结果尚无定论。由于影响这种分歧的因素不明确，我们研究了内部控制缺陷 (ICW) 如何影响 ESG 评级与公司绩效之间的关系。事实上，在 2012 年至 2018 年期间，我们采用了法国上市公司的样本，预测并发现 ICW 和 ESG 评级对公司的业绩都有积极而重要的影响。此外，结果表明 ICW 消极地显着调节 ESG 评级与公司绩效之间的关系。此外，通过矩回归的广义方法检查结果的稳健性。我们还提供理论和实践意义，以推动政策制定者和企业确保可持续发展。我们期望我们的研究可以帮助管理者加强他们的内部资源，例如内部控制 (IC) 和 ESG 评级，以提高公司的绩效。