Commitment to Sustainability in Small and Medium‐Sized Enterprises: The Influence of Strategic Orientations and Management Values |
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| Authors: | Johan Jansson Jonas Nilsson Frida Modig Gabriella Hed Vall |
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| Institution: | 1. Research Institute of Sustainability and Ethics in Business, Ume? School of Business and Economics, Department of Business Administration, Ume? University, Ume?, Sweden;2. School of Business, Economics and Law, University of Gothenburg, Sweden |
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| Abstract: | Ecosystem degradation and social sustainability have become important issues in the corporate sphere during the last few decades. However, research discussing corporate social responsibility and related concepts has often focused on larger companies, sometimes neglecting the specifics of small and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs). The main purpose of this study is to examine the relationships between two common strategic orientations, market orientation (MO) and entrepreneurial orientation (EO), in relation to sustainability commitment, sustainability practices and management values in SMEs. Questionnaire responses from 450 Swedish SMEs were analyzed, confirming the influence of MO, EO and sustainability practices on commitment to sustainability, implying that firms committed to sustainability see both market and entrepreneurial advantages of sustainability. The results also show that different parts of MO and EO differ in importance for commitment to sustainability among SMEs. Implications concern the importance for firms and policymakers to work with sustainability issues using both internal and external perspectives. © 2015 The Authors. Business Strategy and the Environment published by ERP Environment and John Wiley & Sons Ltd |
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| Keywords: | strategic orientation market orientation entrepreneurial orientation environmental issues commitment to sustainability small and medium‐sized enterprises |
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