<p>Executive power is not uniformly distributed, and its impact on corporate decision-making is contingent upon the extent of executive power. This paper presents an empirical investigation into the effects of power of executives with environmental experience backgrounds on corporate green innovation. It employs manually acquired executive ranking data and measures executive power. Building upon the foundation of the upper echelons theory, this study utilizes a panel regression model to examine the influence of executives with green experience backgrounds on the green innovation performance of Chinese listed firms from 2012 to 2022. Our empirical analysis reveals a significant enhancement in both the quantity and quality of green innovations within these companies when executives with prior green experience are present. Furthermore, there is a positive correlation between the level of authority held by these executives within the executive team and their contribution to the overall green innovation performance of the company. These findings underscore the crucial role that executives with green experience credentials play as a decisive determinant of green innovation.</p>