openThe term “sustainability” has become a major buzzword of this millennium both in today’s business world and within the wider sphere of society. Climate change, global population growth, and resource containment are among many other challenges that call for a transition from a linear economy toward a more sustainable one. Society as a whole, but businesses in particular, are the key players in this transition that must be active promoters of this change and create new business models with the optimal fit between the increasing demand for a sustainable economy and their organizational design (Obel and Kallehave 2022). Sustainability must enter into all activities and relations in the company driving not only economic returns but also social and environmental ones, therefore involving a broad spectrum of organizational challenges. This requires a cardinal shift in the way organizations address the long-term impact of their actions on the aforementioned fields influencing not only organizational practices and policies but especially culture and values.
This thesis investigates how organizations can effectively structure themselves in order to achieve ESG objectives while studying the link between sustainability and collaboration. The first chapter provides a general overview of the concept of sustainability and its evolution over time. We will argue that companies need to develop new (collaborative) capabilities and values in order to handle not just their economic performance but social and ecological as well, the so-called “Triple Bottom Line”.
Afterward, a comprehensive literature review on the topic is presented, particularly starting from the Stakeholder Theory, we will argue about the importance of developing a cooperative strategy while handling sustainability issues and we will stress the concept of “collaborative advantage” as a guiding archetype in dealing with sustainability challenges. This will require companies to develop collaborative capabilities in order to realize inter-firm collaboration and pave the way toward a more sustainable future.
The dissertation concludes with the analysis of two case studies of Italian companies that have adopted sustainability as a central tenet and a comparative assessment of their collaborative approaches. Through their experiences, we aim to shed light and learn insightful lessons that add to the larger debate on ethical business practices and the necessity of collaboration as a cardinal tenet in building a sustainable future
