Sustainability as a Small Business Competitive Strategy

Authors

  • Abbas Nadim University of New Haven
  • Robert N. Lussier Springfield College

Abstract

In our global village, sustainability has been an important topic for all countries, and small businesses can create a competitive advantage through developing sustainability strategies. This conceptual article extends the current literature by presenting the case for small businesses to become integrated in the surrounding community and to make sustainability a strategic long-term competitive advantage and a critical co-producer of its long-term success. Implications and the need for further research are discussed.

References

Achua, C. F. & Lussier, R. N. (2002). Small-town merchants are not using the recommended strategies to compete against national discount chains: A prescriptive vs. descriptive study. Journal of Small Business Strategy 13(1), 80-87.

Ambec, S., & Lanoie, P. (2008). Does it pay to be green? A systematic overview. Academy of Management Perspectives 22(4), 45-62.

Ames, M. D., Romano, J. K., & Pham, V. T. (2002). The small business equity capital situation: An economic development perspective. Journal of Small Business Strategy 13(2), 37-55.

AoM (2010). Special issue: Sustainability in management education. Academy of Management Learning & Education 9(3), 377-551.

Arikan, A. T. (2010). Regional entrepreneurial transformation: A complex systems perspective. Journal of Small Business Management 48(2), 152-173.

Bennett, J. (2009). Are we headed toward a green bubble?" Entrepreneur (April), 51-54.

Berrone, P., & Mejia, L. R. G. (2009) Environmental performance and executive compensation: An integrated agency-institutional perspective. Academy of Management Journal 52(1), 103-126.

Brook, D., & Steiner, S. (2008). Social entrepreneurship education: Is it achieving the desired aims? Proceedings of USASBE National conference. 1133-1148.

Brundtland Commission. Cited from S. Colvin Interview of Chief Sustainability Officer (CSO) of DuPont Linda Fisher. Fortune (November 23, 2009), 45-50.

Bustillo, M. (2009). Wal-Mart to assigning new 'green' ratings. Wall Street Journal (July 16), B1.

Call for Papers (2009). Sustainability in management education. Academy of Management Learning & Education 8(3), 312.

Carraher, S. M., Buckley, M. R., & Carraher, C. E. (2008). Research challenges in sustainable strategic management: Change and sustainability. International Journal of Sustainable Strategic Management 1(1), 2-15.

Carter, R., & Van Auken, H. (2006). Small firm bankruptcy. Journal of Small Business Management 44(4), 493-512.

Cohen, B., & Winn, M. (2007). Market imperfections, opportunity, and sustainable entrepreneurship. Journal of Business Venturing 22(1), 29-49.

Colvin, S. (2009). Interview of Linda Fisher. Fortune (November 23), 45-50.

Cosper, A. C. (2010) Green bubble or green opportunity. Entrepreneur (April), 14.

Dacin, P. A., Dacin, M. T., & Matear, M. (2010). Social entrepreneurship: Why we don't need a new theory and how we move forward from here. Academy of Management Perspective 24(3), 37-57.

Dean, T. J., & McMullen, J. S. (2007). Toward a theory of sustainable entrepreneurship: Reducing environmental degradation through entrepreneurial action. Journal of Business Venturing, 22(1), 50-76.

De Clercq, D. & Rangarajan, D. (2008). The role of perceived relational support in entrepreneur-customer dyads. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice 32(4), 659-683.

Delmas, M., Hoffman, V.H., & Kuss, M. (2011). Under the tip of the iceberg: Absorptive capacity, environmental strategy, and competitive advantage. Business & Society 50(1), 116-154.

Di Domenico, M, Haugh, H. & Tracey, P. (2010). Social bricolage: Theorizing social value creation in social enterprises. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice 32(4), 681-703.

Fitzgerald, M. A. Haynes, G. W., Schrank, H. L., & Danes, S. M. (2010). Socially responsible processes of small family business owners: Exploratory evidence from the National Family Business Survey. Journal of Small Business Management 48(4), 524-551.

Fiore, R. A. & Lussier, R. N. (2008/2009). Measuring wealth generation in early-stage entrepreneurial organizations: An alternative to the capital asset pricing model. Journal of Small Business Strategy 19(2), 51-67.

Freeman, R. E. (1984). Strategic management: A stakeholder approach (Boston: Pitman).

Galbreath, J. (2009). Addressing sustainability: A strategy development framework. International Journal of Sustainable Strategic Management 1(3), 303-319.

Gallo, P.J., & Christensen, L.J. (2011). Firm size matters: an empirical investigation of organizational size and ownership on sustainability-related behaviors. Business & Society 50(2), 315-349.

Gibbs, D. (2009). Sustainability entrepreneurs, ecopreneurs and the development of a sustainable economy. Greener Management International 55, 63-78.

Goetz, K.S. (2010). Encouraging sustainable business practices using incentives: A practitioner's view. Management Research Review 33(11), 1042-1053.

Hall, J. K., Daneke, G. A., & Lenox, M. J. (2010). Sustainable development and entrepreneurship: Past contributions and future directions. Journal of Business Venturing 25(5), 439-448.

Hockerts, K., & Wüstenhagen, R. (2010). Greening Goliaths versus emerging Davids - Theorizing about the role of incumbents and new entrants in sustainable entrepreneurship. Journal of Business Venturing 25(5), 481-492.

Hodges, H. E., & Kent, T. W. (2006/2007). Impact of planning and control sophistication in small business. Journal of Small Business Strategy 17(2), 75-87.

ICC (International Chamber of Commerce). Information in this section taken from www.iccwbo.org. Retrieved May 26, 2010.

ISO (International Standards Organization). Information in this section taken from. Retrieved May 26, 2010. www.iso.org

Jiao, J., Welch, H., & Moutray, C. (2008/2009). Start-up resources and entrepreneurial discontinuance: The case of nascent entrepreneurs. Journal of Small Business Strategy 19(2), 1-16.

Kobeissi, N. (2009). Impact of the Community Reinvestment Act on new business start-ups and economic growth in local markets. Journal of Small Business Management 47(4), 489-513.

Lawrence, A. T., & Weber, J. (2011). Business and Society 13e, (New York: McGraw-Hill).

Lester, D. L. (2008). Making the case for sustainable strategic management: an assessment of FedEx. International Journal of Sustainable Strategic Management 1(1), 82-97.

Lim, D. S. K., Morse, E. A., Mitchell, R. K. & Seawright, K. K. (2010). Institutional environment and entrepreneurial cognitions: A comparative business systems perspective. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice 34(3), 491-518.

Litz, R. A., & Stewart, A. C. (2000). Where everybody knows your name: Extraorganizational clan-building as small firm strategy for home field advantage. Journal of Small Business Strategy 11(1), 1-13.

Lussier, R. N. (1995). A nonfinancial business success versus failure prediction model for young firms. Journal of Small Business Management 33 (1), 8-20.

Lussier, R. N. & Corman, J. (1996). A business success vs. failure prediction model for entrepreneurs with 0-10 employees. Journal of Small Business Strategy 19(2), 51-67.

Lussier, R. N., & Pfeifer, S. (2000). A comparison of business success versus failure variables between U.S. and Central Eastern Europe Croatian entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice 24(4), 59-67.

Lussier, R. N., & Pfeifer, S. (2001). A crossnational prediction model for business success. Journal of Small Business Management 39(3), 228-239.

Lussier, R. N. & Halabi, C. E. (2008). An analysis of small business in Chile: A correlational study. Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development 15(3), 490-503.

Lussier, R. N. & Halabi, C. E. (2010). A three country comparison of the business success vs. failure prediction model. Journal of Small Business Management 48(5), 360-377.

Marcus, A. A., & Fremeth, A. R. (2009). Green management matters regardless. Academy of Management Perspectives 23(3), 17-26.

Martine, S., Jouhaina, B.B.G., & Viviane, O.B. (2011). Sustainable entrepreneurship: Is entrepreneurial will enough? A north-south comparison. Journal of Business Ethics 99(3), 335-367.

McCann, J. T., & Holt, R. A. (2010). Defining sustainable leadership. International Journal of Sustainable Strategic Management 2(2), 204-210

Michael, S. C., & Combs, J. G. (2008). Entrepreneurial failure: The case of franchisees. Journal of Small Business Management 46(1), 73-90.

Miller, N. J., Besser, T. L., Riibe, J. V. (2006/2007). Do strategic business networks benefit male- and female-owned small-community businesses? Journal of Small Business Strategy 17(2), 53-74.

Niehm, L. S., Swinney, J., & Miller, N. J. (2008). Community social responsibility and its consequences for family business performance. Journal of Small Business Management 46(3), 331-350.

O'Neill, G. D, Hershauer, J. C., & Golden, J. S. (2009). The cultural context of sustainability entrepreneurship. Greener Management International 55, 33-46.

Osagie, S. O. (2008). The voluntary environmentalists: Green clubs, IO 14001, and voluntary environmental regulations. Academy of Management Review 33(2), 564-568.

Parnell, J. A. (2008). Sustainable strategic management: Construct, parameters, research directions. International Journal of Sustainable Strategic Management 1(1), 35-45.

Parrish, B.D. (2010). Sustainability-driven entrepreneurship: Principles of organizational design. Journal of Business Venturing 25(5), 510-523.

Parrish, B.D., & Foxon, T. (2009). Sustainability entrepreneurship and equitable transitions to a low-carbon economy. Greener Management International 55, 47-62.

Piechocki, R. (2004). Industry survey transparency of annual sustainability reports. Corporate Reputation Review 7(2), 107-123.

Pirolo, R. L., & Presutti, M. (2010). The impact of social capital on the startups' performance growth. Journal of Small Business Management 48(2), 197-227.

Plant, R. (2010). How green should my tech be? It depends on the tech. Wall Street Journal (January 25, 2010), R6.

Pompe, P. M., & S. Bilderbeek (2005). The prediction of bankruptcy of small-and-medium sized industrial firms. Journal of Business Venturing 20(6), 847-869.

Porter, M. E. (1998). New strategies for inner-city economic development: Initiative for a competitive inner city. Journal of Small Business Strategy 9(2), 1-4.

Ramsey, M. (2010). Ghosn sees electric cars taking off. Wall Street Journal (May 25), B4.

Rogoff, E. G., Lee, M. S., & Sub, D. C. (2004). Who done it? Attributions by entrepreneurs and experts of the factors that cause and impede small business success. Journal of Small Business Management 42(4), 364-376.

SBA (Small Business Administration) (2011). Retrieved from www.sba.gov March 1, 2011.

Schick, H., Marxen, S. & Freimann, J. (2002). Sustainability issues for start-up entrepreneurs. Greener Management International 38, 59-71.

Schlange, L.E. (2009). Stakeholder identification in sustainability entrepreneurship. Greener Management International 55, 13-32.

Siegel, D. S. (2009). Green management matters only if it yields more green: An economic/strategic perspective. Academy of Management Perspectives 23(3), 5-16.

Shepherd, D. A., & Patzelt, H. (2011). The new field of sustainable entrepreneurship: Studying entrepreneurial action linking what is to be sustained with what is to be developed. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice 35(1), 137-163.

Smith, H. L., Discenza, R., & Baker, K. G. (2005/2006). Building sustainable success in art galleries: An exploratory study of adaptive strategies. Journal of Small Business Strategy 16(2), 29-41.

Sorenson, R. L., Folker, C. A. & Brigham, K. H. (2008). The collaborative network orientation: Achieving business success through collaborative relationships. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice 32(4), 615-634.

Stead, M. G., & Stead, W. E. (2008). Sustainable strategic management: An evolutionary perspective. International Journal of Sustainable Strategic Management 1(1), 62-81.

Stewart, W. H., May, R. C. & Kalia, A. (2008). Environmental perceptions and the United States and India: Convergence in entrepreneurial information seeking? Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice 32(1), 83-106.

Tilley, F., & Young, W. (2009). Sustainability entrepreneurs. Greener Management International 55, 79-92.

Van Auken, H., Kaufmann, J., & Herrmann, P. (2009). An empirical analysis of the relationship between capital acquisition and bankruptcy law. Journal of Small Business Management 47(1), 23-37.

Walls, J.L., Phan, P.H., & Berrone, P. (2011). Measuring environmental strategy: Construct development, reliability, and validity. Business & Society 50(1), 71-115

WBCSD (World Business Council for Sustainable Development) (2011). Information in this section taken from www.wbcsd.org, retrieved from the About link on October 26, 2011.

Wiklund, J. Davidsson, P. Audretsch, D. B. & Karlsson, C. (2011). The future of entrepreneurship research. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice 35(1), 1-9.

York, J.G., & Venkataraman, S. (2010). The entrepreneur-environment nexus: Uncertainty, innovation, and allocation. Journal of Business Venturing 25(5), 449-463.

Downloads

Published

2010-05-21

Issue

Section

Articles

How to Cite

Sustainability as a Small Business Competitive Strategy. (2010). Journal of Small Business Strategy (archive Only), 21(2), 79-95. https://libjournals.mtsu.edu/index.php/jsbs/article/view/145

Most read articles by the same author(s)