A Literature Review on Sustainable Business Model: first insights about the value measurement gap

Although business models have been extensively studied by researchers, latest trends have led organizations to rethink their way of doing business, focusing not only on profit, but also on social and environmental purposes. That’s why literature on sustainable business models (SBM) has been recently developed and is rapidly spreading. The purpose of this paper is to explore this body of literature, describing its temporal, industrial, geographical and methodological features, but also categorizing articles in terms of main purposes and specific themes addressed. To do so, we conducted an integrative literature review, which highlighted that SBM literature has so far focused on the descriptive analysis of case studies, on the process of innovation of the business model towards sustainability, or on the visual representation and design of the SBM, while a gap emerges in terms of quantitative analysis and performance measurement of SBM. As a result, a specific analysis on SBM articles dealing with the concept of value in its components of proposition, creation, delivery and capture was carried out: we found that authors mainly focused on extending the concept of value proposition and value creation and distribution, but only few of them addressed value capture and almost no one investigated how to measure it in an alternative way, compared to traditional business models. This paper ends by highlighting the research gap on sustainable business model value measurement and suggesting new ideas for future research

Untangling the Origins of Sustainable Commitment: New Insights on the Small vs. Large Firms\u2019 Debate

The sustainable development challenge is increasingly being included in entrepreneurs\u2019 agendas. Firms are considered responsible for social and environmental effects but are also considered as social actors that can effectively incorporate sustainability solutions into market transactions. The literature on corporate social responsibility (CSR) in small business has depicted these firms as less involved in sustainability management implementation owing to resource constraints and limited perception of the business case for sustainability. Further, studies on both small business and sustainable entrepreneurship have highlighted the pivotal role of entrepreneurs\u2019 values in motivating a more sustainable way of conducting business while, large companies, driven by external pressures, are more focused on a strategic CSR approach than small firms. Starting from these premises, the paper aims to identify the main drivers or barriers of sustainability implementation and to verify any significant differences between small and large-sized companies in their approach to sustainability practices implementation. The study adopts a qualitative research method based on semi-structured interviews addressing 22 participants from Italian firms of different sizes selected for their social and environmental commitment. The findings of the study highlight the existence of some common features among small and large firms, in particular, regarding motivations, entrepreneur values, and business vision, contributing new perspectives to the sustainable entrepreneurship debate

The “milky ways”: emerging sustainable business models for sustainable value creation in the dairy industry

Purpose – This study aims to analyse the components of sustainable business models (SBMs) in the dairy industry, in relation to firm-relevant organisational features (size, ownership structure and production process) and through the lenses of the business model framework and the sustainable value exchange matrix (SVEM). This contribution proposes a taxonomy of emerging SBMs and sustainable value creation in the dairy industry. Design/methodology/approach – This research makes use of a multiple case study approach, with cases selected in collaboration with industry experts. The selected firms are highly committed to sustainability transition. Results are drawn from qualitative data obtained from in-depth interviews and secondary sources. The interpretation phases, initially based on open coding, have been enriched by applying the components of business models (BMs) frameworks and the SVEM, and the analyses have been enhanced through an additional interpretative workshop with experts. Findings – The authors related the BMs characteristics of some typical dairy firms transitioning to sustainability, using SBM components and taxonomies emerging in the literature, based on the formalisation of sustainability practices, the scope of operations, and the degree of integration of the three dimensions of sustainable value. These findings led to the discovery of three types of SBM in this dairy industry, referred to as “Milky Ways”. Originality/value – This paper contributes to the scant literature on sustainability in dairy firms, highlighting the different paths followed by small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), cooperatives and large companies in remoulding their business models towards sustainability and thus achieving sustainable value creation

How do firm social practices produce social impacts? Investigating the role of social and long-term orientation

Sustainability practices are expected to yield positive outcomes for both firms and the community. The literature reviewing the relationship between sustainability practices and performance has mainly been concerned with environmental issues and financial outcomes. However, there are few empirical studies that deal with the social dimension of sustainability. This article seeks to address these gaps and contribute to social sustainability studies by suggesting a positive correlation between firms’ social sustainability practices – towards employees and community - and social performance, highlighting the role of social and long-term orientation as mediators. Social identity theory and practice-based view are employed to explain these relational mechanisms. Data were collected through a survey of Italian firms in the manufacturing and trade sectors. A two-stage structural equation modeling approach was followed to test the proposed mediation model. The results reveal that when practices are supported by a strong orientation, it triggers the process of social identification, thereby enhancing the firm’s social outcomes. From a practice-based view, orientation can explain the performance differences among firms. To succeed in enhancing social impacts, managers and policymakers should prioritise promoting the cultural aspects of sustainability

Sustainable Business Models: Literature Review of Main Contributions and Themes

Literature on sustainable business models (SBM) has recently emerged and is rapidly expanding. This promising research field is aimed at intersecting traditional business model approaches with corporate sustainability. Most of the research to date has focused on existing case studies or examples of sustainability innovations in business models or on the use of frameworks and tools to categorise or design SBMs or suggest the stages of this innovative process towards sustainability. This article presents an integrative literature review aimed at describing the objective aspects of the SBM literature such as its temporal, industrial, geographical and methodological factors. As well as this descriptive analysis, the paper categorises the SBM literature in terms of its main purposes and themes. This categorisation is aimed at synthesising the main contributions of the SBM literature and to highlight gaps to suggest possible further developments. Despite presenting different perspectives on value (proposition, creation, delivery and capture), the current research on SBM has failed to take a holistic approach towards sustainable value measurement and representation in its models and frameworks

Spreading Sustainability Innovation through the Co-Evolution of Sustainable Business Models and Partnerships

Sustainability innovation is often not achievable by a single organisation; even if changes in business operations can lead to great advances towards a more sustainable business model (SBM), the eectiveness of these implementations largely depends on the combined actions of the organisation\u2019s network of partners. The aim of this research is to analyse the way that SBMs and partnerships co-evolve to enhance the sustainability of the involved organisations and spread sustainability culture beyond the network. In doing so, this article presents a case study of the company Alisea as a business operating within a circular business model, along with its network of partnerships. The co-evolution of the business model and partnerships is led by enabling factors that characterise the underlying relationships. The role of cross-sector collaborations is demonstrated in terms of boosting the social and environmental dimensions of the circular business model, enhancing social and economic benefits within and outside the partnerships, and spreading sustainability culture in dierent sectors

The transition towards benefit corporations: What are theroles for stakeholders?

A benefit corporation (BC) is the legal status of an enterprise that embraces a dual-purpose business model (BM) of maximising shareholder value while satisfying stakeholders' interests. The literature so far has focussed on the motivations beyond the birth or transformation of BC, the factors that can favour the emergence of BCs, and the results companies achieve after the transformation, as well as studies on the new BCs' legislation. Other studies have examined how the duality of purpose (profit vs. social benefits) can be composed, and the risks of a mission drift favouring profit maximisation in BCs. By drawing on stakeholder theory, this study aims to highlight the role of stakeholders in the process of transformation from a traditional for-profit BM to a BC model. We adopt a qualitative approach through a longitudinal case study to observe the transition of a small-medium enterprise into a BC. The results show how management and engagement practices coexist in the relationships with stakeholders and how an instrumental approach prevails

A Three-Stage Model of Exporting: New Insights into SMEs\u2019 Internationalization Performance Relationship

The article presents the results of an empirical analysis on the relationship between exporting and profitability in a sample of 1,231 manufacturing SMEs. A sigmoid relationship between the degree of internationalization, measured by Export Sales Ratio (ESR), and the profitability of the firms (measured by Return on Sales, ROS) is hypothesized. The results indicate that exporting can be beneficial to SMEs, but only in the second stage of the process, when a certain degree of international commitment is achieved. In the first and in the third stage, when the incidence of sales internationalization is respectively lower and higher, the incremental costs of exporting exceed the related benefits, determining a declining performance. This research contributes to existent literature by deepening the internationalization and performance (I&P) relationship within a context of exporting small and medium enterprises

A New Framework for Assessing the Sustainability Reporting Disclosure of Water Utilities

Sustainability reporting is becoming more and more widespread among companies aiming at disclosing their contribution to sustainable development and gaining legitimacy from stakeholders. This is more significant for firms operating in a public services\u2019 context and mainly when supplying a fundamental public resource, like water utilities. While the literature on sustainability reporting in the water sector is scant, there is an increasing need to study the usefulness and quality of its sustainability disclosures to adequately inform the stakeholders about the activities of water utilities to protect this fundamental resource and general sustainable development. This article presents a novel assessment framework based on a scoring technique and an empirical analysis on the sustainability reports of Italian water utilities carried out through it. The results highlight a low level of disclosure on the sustainability indicators suggested by the main sustainability reporting guidelines (Global Reporting Initiative, (GRI), and Sustainability Accounting Standard Board, (SASB)); most companies tend to disclose only qualitative information and fail to inform about some material aspects of water management, such as water recycled, network resilience, water sources, and effluent quality. These findings indicate that sustainability reporting is mainly considered as a communication tool, rather than a performance measurement and an accountability tool, but also suggest the need for a new and international industry-specific sustainability reporting standar

α-Synuclein is a Novel Microtubule Dynamase.

α-Synuclein is a presynaptic protein associated to Parkinson's disease, which is unstructured when free in the cytoplasm and adopts α helical conformation when bound to vesicles. After decades of intense studies, α-Synuclein physiology is still difficult to clear up due to its interaction with multiple partners and its involvement in a pletora of neuronal functions. Here, we looked at the remarkably neglected interplay between α-Synuclein and microtubules, which potentially impacts on synaptic functionality. In order to identify the mechanisms underlying these actions, we investigated the interaction between purified α-Synuclein and tubulin. We demonstrated that α-Synuclein binds to microtubules and tubulin α2β2 tetramer; the latter interaction inducing the formation of helical segment(s) in the α-Synuclein polypeptide. This structural change seems to enable α-Synuclein to promote microtubule nucleation and to enhance microtubule growth rate and catastrophe frequency, both in vitro and in cell. We also showed that Parkinson's disease-linked α-Synuclein variants do not undergo tubulin-induced folding and cause tubulin aggregation rather than polymerization. Our data enable us to propose α-Synuclein as a novel, foldable, microtubule-dynamase, which influences microtubule organisation through its binding to tubulin and its regulating effects on microtubule nucleation and dynamics