Business Commons^™

Regenerative Tourism Model: Challenges Of Adapting Concepts From Natural Science To Tourism Industry, Asif Hussain, Marie Haley

Journal of Sustainability and Resilience

The study proposes a regenerative tourism model. The application of the natural science ideas of regeneration needs to be clarified before the tourism industry can adopt a regenerative tourism model. Without such clarification, there is a high risk of ‘green washing’ and inappropriate adaption of a regenerative model. The borrowing of natural science to industry and its application in social sciences confuse the essence of the true concept of regeneration. In a regenerative agriculture context restoring a holistic system that mimics nature and includes social and economic spheres contributes to improving the whole system. When a social system aims to …

To Buy Green Or Not To Buy Green: Do Structural Dependencies Block Ecological Responsiveness?, Simon J.D. Schillebeeckx, Teemu Kautonen, Henri Hakata

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Despite the significant increase in interest in sustainable business practices, decisions on switching to more environmentally friendly input materials are understudied. In a conjoint experiment, we presented 267 Finnish manufacturing firms with an opportunity to acquire an alternative, more ecological input material and investigated their willingness to switch to that material. We find that in general, firms are willing to substitute their current principal input with a more ecological alternative under conditions of functional parity. However, such willingness is contingent on the firm’s value creation structures. Specifically, if the products and processes driving the firm’s value creation rely more on …

Introduction To The Business Of Sustainability: An Organizing Framework For Theory, Practice And Impact, Gerard George, Martine R. Haas, Havovi Heerjee Joshi, Anita M. Mcgahan, Paul Tracey

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Human activity needs to become sustainable, and businesses have a massive role to play in it. Important progress has occurred. The Coronavirus pandemic has reinforced the importance of sustainability and resilience. Businesses have become champions of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), both by integrating them into their core activities and by developing strategies and metrics to achieve them. Despite this progress, more must be done to achieve sustainability targets on a timetable that is relevant. While the narratives of businesses are often exciting, their follow-through with implementation remains limited. So too is information on successful practices, conceptual knowledge …

Dual Agenda Innovation: How Firms Pursue Economic And Environmental Goals Simultaneously, Tianni Xie

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

With the increasing prevalence of UN SDG (Sustainable Development Goals) and ESG movement, more and more companies have started to include environmental performance as part of their strategic goals. From both risk management and value creation perspectives, not only is the positive environmental performance socially desirable, but it also can affect the economic performance. Companies strive to achieve superior environmental and economic performance (i.e.E2 performance), but few have succeeded.

In this dissertation research, the author proposed that firms are more likely to achieve superior E2 performance by engaging in dual agenda innovation that integrates environmental goal and economic goal in …

Transitioning To A Circular Economy: A Systematic Review Of Its Drivers And Barriers, Jovan Tan, Fabien Jianwei Tan, Seeram Ramakrishna

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Advancing societal's progress to achieve circularity is imperative as our linear (take, make, waste) economic model is highly unsustainable. It depletes our natural resources and substantially contributes to pollution and global greenhouse gas emissions. Our continued participation in the linear economy will also expose businesses to volatile resource prices and supply disruptions resulting from the scarcity of critical materials and geopolitical factors. Hence, there are compelling reasons for businesses to transit and participate in the circular economy. However, anecdotal evidence suggests limited practical implementations. Therefore, this systematic review aims to determine the most significant drivers and barriers that influence business …

Strategic Energy Master Planning For Carbon Neutrality, Marie Patterson

CSU Journal of Sustainability and Climate Change

Universities across the United States are generating goals to be more sustainable and carbon neutral. The energy used in existing buildings on campuses amount to a large volume of greenhouse emissions and must be reduced to help achieve neutrality goals. Strategic Energy Master Plans are instrumental to support these goals through the development of recommendations to reduce energy. Calculating the energy use intensity for existing buildings, a main component of a Strategic Energy Master Plan, can help the campus understand where energy is being used the most. With this information the highest energy consuming buildings can be the focus of …

Sustainable Agriculture Through Data Analytics, Arthur Carlos, Xayaphone Salinthone, Michelle Nguyen, Aimee Jacobs

CSU Journal of Sustainability and Climate Change

There is an increasing need for sustainable agriculture in light of climate change and growing populations. Certified B Corporations meet the highest standards of verified social and environmental performance, public transparency, and legal accountability to balance profit and purpose. This paper describes a student-learning project that develops an Environmental Management System (EMS) using data analytics to improve a family-owned farming business's decision-making process for efficient natural resource allocation, as well as the reporting requirements associated with their B Corp Certification. This project's primary resource is water reporting, but it may be expanded to include other resources.

“Green” Marketing In The Apparel Industry: The Spectrum Of Veracity, Stephanie R. Keane

Honors Theses

Apparel companies’ propensity for manipulation in their marketing of environmental initiatives contributes to immense environmental pollution from petrochemical textile material production. Public scrutiny pressures these businesses to adopt “green” initiatives to avoid losing devoted consumers. In some cases, these initiatives disguise the real operations of a company or claim benignity for the company when this is not the reality. Previous business ethics research analyzed the emergence of “greenwashing” in corporations and thus concluded that corporations market themselves as eco-friendly to portray commodification as sustainable. In the form of case studies, this paper scrutinizes four companies: Zara, Patagonia, Lululemon, and Pact. …

Sustainability - A Shifting Paradigm In The Hospitality Industry, Julia Ransom

Senior Capstone Projects

The purpose of this review is to explore the topic of sustainability and how it relates to the hospitality industry. As one of the largest consumers of vital resources like energy, water, and land, the hospitality industry requires more sustainable solutions to negate the risk of environmental damage. This review will provide insight into the importance of sustainability, how sustainability is defined, numerical representation of sustainability, and sustainable solutions to environmental concerns in the hospitality industry.

Strategies For Information Technology Small Business Owners To Sustain Beyond The First 5 Years, Edward Alan Rodarte

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Small businesses are the foundation of an economy and spawn innovation, but small business owners fail at an alarming rate because they lack strategies to sustain business operations. Since 50% of small businesses fail within the first 5 years, small business sustainability research is critical to support small business owners. Grounded in entrepreneurial theory, the purpose of this multiple case study was to identify strategies information technology (IT) small business owners use to sustain operation beyond the first 5 years. The participants included four IT small business owners in the Southwestern United States who sustained operations beyond the first 5 …

National Culture And Attitudes’ Impact On Diffusion Of Sustainable New Technology-Based Products, Mayank Jaiswal, Lee Zane

New England Journal of Entrepreneurship

Purpose – Sustainability is increasingly becoming an essential aspect of technological innovations. In addition, the diffusion of sustainable new technology-based products appears to be uneven across the globe. The authors examine the effect of three country-level Hofstede measures of culture and two national-level innovation characteristics on the diffusion of Sustainable New Technology-based Products (SNTP).

Design/methodology/approach – Regression and Necessary Conditions Analysis were used to analyze a panel dataset of electric and hybrid vehicles sales from 2008 to 2017 across 89 countries.

Findings – Results suggest Long-Term Orientation (LTO) was correlated with SNTP diffusion, Indulgence (IVR) was partially correlated with SNTP …

Improving Energy Stewardship At Michigan Technological University’S Athletic Complexes, Cynthia L. Pindral

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Athletics departments are showcases for universities, serving as a public face and recruitment outlet that communicates university identity to the world. This applied research project examines the state of electrical energy infrastructure at Michigan Technological University with special attention to the Athletic Department and reports on the process for energy decisions in both settings. I take a qualitative research approach analyzing University documents and conducting interviews with informants in Athletics Administration, Facilities, and MTU’s Office of Sustainability and Resilience. Four major barriers to efficiency emerged: (1) lack of University-wide climate action goals, (2) staffing issues due to a large number …

Strategies To Improve Minority Business Enterprises’ Access To Capital For Competitive Positioning And Profitability, Darlene Hill

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Some minority business enterprises (MBEs) have limited capital for setting up their businesses, which often leads to business failure. Grounded in entrepreneurship theory, the purpose of this qualitative multiple-case study was to explore strategies MBEs used to access capital to improve their competitive positioning and profitability. The participants were six MBE owners from Alabama who demonstrated success at maintaining and securing working capital to maintain a profitable business for a minimum of 5 years. Data were collected from semistructured interviews and reviews of organization documents and websites. Using Yin’s five-step data analysis process, four themes emerged: owner financing, government loans …

Business Planning Strategies To Sustain Hair Salons, Charity T. Adams

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Small businesses employ most Americans in the workforce; however, more than half of small businesses fail within the first 5 years of operation. Small business owners who lack business planning strategies are at a higher risk of failure. Grounded in the sustainable activity model, the purpose of this multiple case study was to explore strategies hair salon owners used to sustain their business beyond 5 years. The participants comprised seven hair salon owners in the Southern region of the United States who successfully sustained their business beyond 5 years. Data were collected from semistructured interviews and reviews of organization documents …

Esg Trends: Results Of The 2022 Hr@Moore Survey Of Chros, Adam Steinbach, Donald J. Schepker, Anthony J. Nyberg, Patrick M. Wright

Reports

There has been incredible momentum in recent years for the expectation that major companies should be attentive to and deliver results on Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) issues. For their part, companies and their executive leadership teams (ELTs) seem responsive to these expectations, developing ESG strategies and devoting resources to making progress in these areas. Perhaps the most notable commitment along these lines came in 2019, when the Business Roundtable (BRT) issued a statement to “redefine the purpose of a corporation” to focus on all stakeholders rather than be predominantly centered on shareholders. Much of the conversation around corporations in …

Climate Change And Sustainability In Asean Countries, David K. Ding, Sarah E. Beh

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

The ASEAN region is one of the most susceptible regions to climate change, with three of its countries—Myanmar, the Philippines, and Thailand—among those that have suffered the greatest fatalities and economic losses because of climate-related disasters. This paper reveals that the ASEAN’s environmental performance is sorely lagging other regions despite evidence of its cohesive and comprehensive efforts to mitigate emissions and build up adaptive capacity to climate-related disasters. Within the ASEAN, there exist gaps in environmental performance between each country. This suggests that increased cooperation between individual ASEAN countries is pertinent for the region to collectively combat climate change. In …

Upscaling Textile Upcycling, Mason Scott, Brett High, Sophia Marcum, Rachel Schiffli, Andrew Flowers

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

Our research project was designed to answer one question: is it feasible for the Goodwill Industries of Akron to use upcycled clothing as a sustainable revenue driver to fund their mission? Upcycled products are simply defined as products whose value has been increased by combination or alteration. This contrasts with product reuse or recycling which Goodwill already utilizes as ways to generate revenue. Goodwill’s primary source of revenue currently is the resale of donated goods at their brick-and-mortar stores, and we thought that upcycled goods were consistent with their established business model. We hypothesized that the same consumers that presently …

External Stakeholder Relationship Strategies For Increasing Nonprofit Organizations' Financial Viability, Henry Ayoola Olofinmoyin

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractA business leader’s ability to establish and sustain effective relationships with organizational stakeholders affects business competitiveness and sustainability. Some executives of nonprofit organizations (NPOs) lack strategies to build relationships with external stakeholders to achieve financial viability for their organizations. Grounded in stakeholder theory, the purpose of this qualitative single case study was to explore strategies NPO executives use to build relationships with their organization's external stakeholders to achieve their organization's financial viability objectives. The participants were three senior executives of an NPO in Mississippi, United States, who have successfully managed financial viability objectives using external stakeholder relationship strategies for 3 …

Strategies To Improve Minority Business Enterprises’ Access To Capital For Competitive Positioning And Profitability, Darlene Hill

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Some minority business enterprises (MBEs) have limited capital for setting up their businesses, which often leads to business failure. Grounded in entrepreneurship theory, the purpose of this qualitative multiple-case study was to explore strategies MBEs used to access capital to improve their competitive positioning and profitability. The participants were six MBE owners from Alabama who demonstrated success at maintaining and securing working capital to maintain a profitable business for a minimum of 5 years. Data were collected from semistructured interviews and reviews of organization documents and websites. Using Yin’s five-step data analysis process, four themes emerged: owner financing, government loans …

Empowerment Strategies For Sustaining Small Business Moving Companies, Leroy Jr Peter Fontenette

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The lack of empowerment strategies can cause high employee attrition for small moving company owners and lead to business closures within 5 years. Small moving company owners using effective empowerment strategies can reduce attrition and increase business longevity. Grounded in the transformational theory, the purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to explore empowerment strategies three small moving company owners in California used for sustaining their business beyond 5 years. Data were collected from semistructured interviews and company documents, such as logistics instruments, a combined agreement contract for moving services, and a freight bill. Using thematic analysis, the three …

Financial Strategies For Sustainability Of Small- And Medium-Sized Enterprises In Nigeria, Okey Okoro Udo

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Although small and medium enterprises (SMEs) contribute significantly to Nigeria’s socioeconomic and political development, most of the country’s SMEs no longer operate by their fifth anniversary. Many owners lack knowledge of the financial strategies required for the long-term performance and growth of their enterprise. The aim of this qualitative multiple case study was to gain an in-depth understanding of financial strategies that SMEs owner-managers can adopt to enhance the sustainability of their business operations in Nigeria. This study was grounded in entrepreneurship theory and Porter’s model of competitive strategy. Qualitative data from multiple sources, including semistructured interviews, scholarly works, and …

The Diffusion Of A Discipline: Examining Social Marketing's Institutionalization Within Environmental Contexts, Liz Foote

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

As a social change discipline, social marketing has demonstrated its effectiveness in addressing many types of wicked problems. However, despite its utility in environmental contexts, it is neither well known nor widespread in its uptake in these settings. This study’s purpose is to reveal opportunities to drive the adoption, implementation, and diffusion (“institutionalization”) of social marketing within the domains of environmental sustainability and natural resource conservation. This research considers the use of social marketing as an innovative practice within a diffusion of innovations framework and uses a systems lens to examine early adopter social marketing professionals and the institutional contexts …

Questioning Complacency: An Analysis Of Sustainability To Foster Innovation, Alexandra M. Bierman

WWU Honors College Senior Projects

Sustainability is a tricky subject. With a vague definition and a growing demand, we find ourselves in the midst of a world where sustainability is the goal, but there is no set route to get there. In this two-part project, I explore what it looks like to write a sustainability plan for a web-based company, as well as an in-depth essay about sustainability. I question what it means to be sustainable, its benefits, as well as its drawbacks. What can sustainability teach us, and how can we challenge its framework to better suit a growing demand for economically viable businesses.

Fashion And Sustainability: Consumption And Shared Responsibility, Jie Gao Fowler, Timothy Reisenwitz, Rongwei Chu

Atlantic Marketing Journal

Indulgence in fashion has been indispensable in modern societies, as it is a crucial device for self-image and identity construction. With the advanced technology and globalization of production, the fashion industry has skewed towards fast fashion, making the latest trends available to mass consumers at affordable prices. This research aims to examine how Chinese consumers perceive sustainable consumption in the context of fashion. We endeavor to explore the factors that influence the engagement of sustainable consumption. This study aims not to argue whether sustainable fashion should mobilize or replace the current fashion system but to provide evidence on consumers' perception …

Beyond The Green Iron Cage: Exploring The Macro And Micro-Level Influences On Executive Decisions About Sustainability Investments In Small And Medium Size Firms, Igor Estraykh

Theses and Dissertations

Although research on corporate environmental sustainability has shed light on different aspects of organizational and individual level factors that influence corporate decisions, it does not fully account for how individual executives within firms react to these forces and make decisions, specifically within small to medium size enterprises (SMEs). This study used a grounded theory approach to interview 19 SME executives from 13 different industries to explore how organizational and individual level factors influence their ability to evaluate and make decisions related to sustainability initiatives. The study found that SME executives faced isomorphic pressures for sustainability, individual agency pressures, significant resource …

Consistencies And Inconsistencies In The Application And Mechanisms Of Corporate Social Responsibility: A Case Study Approach To Seeking Clarification, Melissa Cook

Theses and Dissertations

While the idea of corporate responsibility emerged in the 1950s and 1960s, awareness of the ideas that comprise Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) has increased over the last few years. Although there are numerous CSR reviews published, and despite increasing public awareness regarding CSR, a unified definition and framework remain elusive. The problem is that many leaders do not understand CSR and are simply not integrating it into their strategic management process. The purpose of this qualitative research case study was to explore and examine consistencies and inconsistencies in the application and mechanisms of CSR by examining the extent that CSR …

Climate Change And Cop26: Are Digital Technologies And Information Management Part Of The Problem Or The Solution? An Editorial Reflection And Call To Action, Yogesh K. Dwivedi, Laurie Hughes, Arpan Kumar Kar, Abdullah M. Baabdullah, Purva Grover, Roba Abbas, Daniela Andreini, Iyad Abumoghli, Yves Barlette, Deborah Bunker, Leona Chandra Kruse, Ioanna Constantiou, Robert M. Davison, Rahul De', Rameshwar Dubey, Henry Fenby-Taylor, Babita Gupta, Wu He, Mitsuru Kodama, Matti Mäntymäki, Bhimaraya Metri, Katina Michael, Johan Olaisen, Niki Panteli, Samuli Pekkola, Rohit Nishant, Ramakrishnan Raman, Nripendra P. Rana, Frantz Rowe, Suprateek Sarker, Brenda Scholtz, Maung Sein, Jeel Dharmeshkumar Shah, Thompson S.H. Teo, Manoj Kumar Tiwari, Morten Thanning Vendelø, Michael Wade

Information Technology & Decision Sciences Faculty Publications

The UN COP26 2021 conference on climate change offers the chance for world leaders to take action and make urgent and meaningful commitments to reducing emissions and limit global temperatures to 1.5 °C above pre-industrial levels by 2050. Whilst the political aspects and subsequent ramifications of these fundamental and critical decisions cannot be underestimated, there exists a technical perspective where digital and IS technology has a role to play in the monitoring of potential solutions, but also an integral element of climate change solutions. We explore these aspects in this editorial article, offering a comprehensive opinion based insight to a …

The Relationship Between Food Retailers And Distributors, Madison Seigler, Julia Anderson, Aidan Morton, Cassandra Williams, Victoria Bloomgren, Jacob Tutty

Undergraduate Theses, Professional Papers, and Capstone Artifacts

Our understanding of the science of anthropogenic climate change and its immediate and indirect impacts has grown within the last decade.Alongside anincrease in concern for the inequities within the industrialized food system, climate change is impacting agriculture and the communities that depend on it in myriad ways. These challenges have catalyzed investment in sustainable agriculture, “eat local” food movements, and rethinking of all aspects of food systems, including consumers, producers, retailers, and distributors. The body of literature on food systems primarily focuses on the connection between consumers and retailers; however, there is a notable absence of literature on the relationships …

Board-Level Sustainability Paradoxes, Robert S. Bikel

Theses and Dissertations

Managing sustainability in for-profit organizations can give rise to multiple tensions, including those between financial and social objectives or meeting competing stakeholder demands on the firm. Recent research into these tensions suggests that framing them paradoxically, as competing objectives that are interconnected and persist through time, can help to manage those tensions and may even promote innovative solutions. This research project, consisting of two complimentary papers, examined how a paradox approach might help directors on the boards of for-profit companies more productively manage sustainability. Specifically, it examined how a paradox mindset, a willingness to embrace multiple tensions among competing objectives, …

Strategies For Increasing The Sustainability Of Small Restaurant Business, Sahara J. Givens-Evans

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Small business owners who operate in the restaurant industry face many challenges and sometimes succumb to failures. Identifying solutions to avoid failure is important and will strengthen this community of entrepreneurs and help in terms of creating sustainability strategies. Grounded in Richard Cantillon’s entrepreneurship theory, the purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to explore strategies small business owners in the restaurant industry use to sustain business beyond 5 years. Participants included six small restaurant business managers who survived beyond 5 years and specialized in fast-casual food service within Chicago. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews and participant reflections. …