I laboratori

The production and consumption of energy requires sustainable business models, especially for energy demanding companies. However, sustainability is a complex phenomenon, particularly in high-technology sectors, and requires the integration of diverse knowledge for sustainable innovation through a network of partnerships. Recent literature states that business model (BM) innovation, based on networks and partnerships, is crucial for sustainable development. The resource dependence theory (RDT) helps to explain how different levels of dependencies induce companies to create network linkages, transforming their BM for sustainability. Building alliances with other organisations provides a source of information, knowledge, and other resources to help solve complex problems.  With evidence from a case study focusing on the green energy network in Italy, this research offers empirical evidence on how new forms of interdependencies arising within the network drive changes in the BM of firms by focusing on the three main BM elements: value proposition; value capture; and value creation and delivery. The network forces its participants to widen their definition of value and include value creation for both company and society as a BM goal. The network also allows for the sharing of new concepts, knowledge, and practices, thereby creating and reinforcing a different approach and creating new products or projects, based on new links among the participants, thus further consolidating the network. The evidence shows that networks help achieve sustainability goals by solving the problem of resource dependency; however, new resource dependencies on network partners, and the network itself, are seen to emerge.  The results have implications for practitioners and future research on networks and sustainable business models. 

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Concerns over sustainable development and the responsible use of natural resources have driven businesses to integrate sustainability into their strategies, leading to the concept of the Sustainable Business Model (SBM). This research aims to analyze the way SBMs and business partnerships co-evolve to enhance the sustainability of the involved organizations and spread sustainability culture beyond the network. 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 study demonstrates how an environmentally focused business model can also incorporate social and economic aspects through collaborations and identified key enabling factors for this collaborative circular business model: shared values, absence of opportunistic behavior, knowledge sharing, trust, and commitment.The spread of sustainable culture, education and innovation led to new business opportunities for Alisea and its partners, initially within the supply chain, then expanded to non-profit and public sector organisations in a sort of virtuous circle. The multiple-supply chain BM of Alisea and its revolutionary value proposition make way for a new BMs, in which partners co-create new products enabling a sort of ‘restitution’ of growth, thanks to knowledge sharing and relationship creation, in a win–win situation.This paper contributes to the literature on SBMs, business and cross-sector partnerships by expressing the reciprocal influences on their respective paths of evolution and the idea of a single project shared with a partner is only the start of an indefinite series of opportunities based on the network of relationships that supports the project.

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The sustainable development challenge is increasingly being included in entrepreneurs’ agendas. Firms are considered responsible for social and environmental effects but are also considered social actors that can effectively incorporate sustainability solutions into market transactions. The literature on corporate social responsibility (CSR) in small and medium business (SMEs) has depicted these firms as less involved in sustainability management implementation, due to resource constraints and limited perception of the business case for sustainability.  The paper analyses factors influencing sustainability practices implementation: (1) pressures from external environment, (2) expected benefits of sustainability implementation and (3) entrepreneur’s inner features in guiding strategy practices implementation. With 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. The findings highlight the existence of some common features among small and large firms, in particular regarding motivations, entrepreneur values, and business vision. Studies on both small business have highlighted the pivotal role of entrepreneurs’ 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.

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The traditional, profit-focused view of organizational purpose of companies is being increasingly challenged by a shift toward a broader, multi-objective approach that recognizes the societal value businesses can generate. This shift has led to the emergence of new business models, such as benefit corporations (BCs), which balance profit generation with social and environmental objectives. Italy was the first European country to introduce a legal framework for BCs, recognizing them as a distinct legal entity. BCs operate with a commitment to sustainability, transparency, and responsibility toward diverse stakeholders. However, the purpose of BCs remains underexplored, particularly within the context of Italian firms. This study aims to provide empirical evidence on the organizational purpose of Italian BCs through qualitative content analysis of the public declarations of 94 BCs across various industries. The research categorizes the drivers of BC adoption into micro-level (individual), meso-level (organizational), and macro-level (societal) factors. Findings indicate that while many BCs focus on the legal conformity, sustainability, common good, and profit creation, the understanding of purpose is often vague and multidimensional. The analysis reveals diverse business models employed by BCs, such as circular economy practices, shared value, and relational capital. Despite the legal recognition of their purpose-driven status, the study highlights a lack of clarity in how BCs operationalize and communicate their benefit goals. The research concludes that while BCs show a commitment to societal benefit, further scrutiny is necessary to ensure the authenticity of their stated objectives and prevent potential greenwashing. 

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Fair trade plays a crucial role in achieving the SDGs by promoting a more democratic global economy that supports small producers in developing countries. Within this system, intermediate organizations act as essential bridges, connecting producers from emerging economies with profit-driven companies in developed nations. These organizations are considered ambidextrous, as they balance knowledge exploration—driving innovation—and knowledge exploitation—enhancing efficiency. This ambidexterity allows them to foster both social impact and business performance within the fair-trade system.  Through qualitative research, including interviews and financial analysis, the study reveals how companies like Altromercato (AM) navigates the complexities of balancing exploration and exploitation, contributing to both short-term efficiency and long-term innovation. Altromercato, as a central player in the fair trade network, facilitates the transfer of knowledge and competences across the supply chain. The organization helps improve processes for upstream partners and provides higher quality products to downstream businesses, while also sharing managerial expertise. While AM excels at fostering innovation, its involvement in improving operational efficiency has been limited for its partners and for itself, resulting in financial constraints. Nevertheless, AM’s ability to simultaneously support sustainability and profitability demonstrates its ambidextrous role in the fair-trade ecosystem.  The study also identifies asymmetries in the knowledge transfer between upstream and downstream partners, suggesting areas for further development. Overall, this research provides key theoretical insights and practical recommendations for enhancing the economic sustainability of fair-trade organizations like AM, while offering a foundation for future research on ambidexterity in fair trade enterprises. 

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Since 2016, Benefit Corporations (BCs) have appeared in Italy, created with the purpose of pursuing, in addition to economic activities, goals of common benefit (social and environmental), operating responsibly, sustainably and transparently. These corporations are required to include in their statutes their set common benefit goals, to measure their impacts annually, and to report on their efforts through the drafting of an impact report.  This study investigates what features present corporations with this legal status and how they are fulfilling the reporting requirements of Italian law. The research analyzed the geographical, sectoral, and dimensional spread, as well as some aspects of governance and their published impact reports. The data show how BCs are predominantly small, newly established companies that mainly engage in the service sector. It also emerges how many Italian companies, especially medium- to large-sized ones, have been implementing CSR practices for years, but very few formalize their commitment to being BCs through statutory amendment.A mismatch between SB status and obtaining certification is also noted in that only a few of the BCs are already certified, while most only adopt legal status. Analysis on impact reports shows that there are still many companies that do not comply with regulatory reporting and impact assessment requirements. Published reports rarely contain monitoring KPIs, often do not provide the possibility of comparing data for several years and contain mostly generic objectives from which explicit action plans do not emerge. Stimuli for prospective research are proposed.

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The paper fits into a popular strand these days, that of sustainability, and offers insights regarding the challenges in sustainability reporting from an organizational and professional perspective. It bases its analysis on Suddaby and Viale's (2011) theorization regarding the reshaping of organizations, and highlights how “organizational spaces,” actors, rules and professional capital evolve as sustainability is incorporated into corporate reporting.    For these reasons, the paper also has strong practical implications for businesses, organizations of all kinds, reporting professionals and professional bodies. Indeed, the paper offers a lens for interpreting the business and professional challenges associated with the most recent evolutions in sustainability reporting practice and related standard-setting, and also suggests an agenda for future research in this field.    

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Integrated reporting (IR) represents a transformative initiative in corporate reporting, merging financial and non-financial information to provide a holistic view of an organization’s value creation strategy. This study investigates the effects of voluntarily released integrated reports on financial stakeholders, particularly focusing on analyst forecasts across diverse institutional contexts. Through a comprehensive quantitative analysis spanning three years, the research explores the relationship between IR release and analysts’ forecast accuracy, considering the moderating role of country-level institutional characteristics. The study sample comprises 218 companies—139 that adopt IR and 79 that do not—identified using the IIRC’s IR Examples Database.   Findings indicate that analysts predict earnings per share with greater accuracy for companies that adopt IR, especially in environments characterized by strong institutional enforcement, whereas in weak institutional settings, IR release is not beneficial for the forecast accuracy. However, in settings marked by high regulatory quality and pluralistic societies, the informativeness of IR diminishes, suggesting that mandatory disclosures may overshadow the benefits of voluntary reporting.   This research contributes to existing literature by demonstrating that the advantages of IR are not uniform across countries and are significantly influenced by institutional frameworks. Moreover, it underscores the importance of ESG-linked incentives for management in driving IR adoption. The implications extend to policymakers and regulators, emphasizing the necessity for enhanced enforcement of non-financial disclosures to foster responsible corporate behavior. Future research should further investigate how varying institutional characteristics shape the effectiveness and utility of integrated reporting within capital markets, ultimately enriching our understanding of its impact on financial analysts and stakeholders. 

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Amid growing global attention to sustainability reporting, this study explores the voluntary adoption of Integrated Reporting (IR) and its relevance in financial markets. Despite increasing mandatory nonfinancial disclosure requirements, full integration of financial and sustainability information remains voluntary, particularly in the European Union (EU), where corporate reporting is undergoing significant transformation. Using a sample of 133 companies listed in the IIRC’s IR Examples Database and other sources, this study analyze the association between IR release and financial analysts’ forecasts, focusing on forecast accuracy and dispersion across diverse institutional settings. Results reveal that IR informativeness varies significantly by country: in strong institutional enforcement contexts, IR release improves analysts’ forecast accuracy, while its impact in weaker contexts is limited. Additionally, IR is consistently linked to reduced forecast dispersion, indicating greater consensus among analysts.These findings highlight the moderating role of institutional frameworks in determining IR's value for financial markets and underscore the necessity of regulatory measures to either mandate IR or strengthen institutional contexts. The study also offers insights into the potential effects of the EU’s proposed revisions to the 2014 Directive on nonfinancial information, which aims to introduce mandatory reporting and standardized frameworks, thereby enhancing comparability. The study suggests that these changes will elevate the significance of voluntary sustainability reporting, benefiting capital markets through improved analyst predictive capabilities. The study has implications for corporate managers, policymakers, and regulators, emphasizing the strategic importance of IR and the need for harmonized nonfinancial reporting standards. Research limitations and avenues for future exploration are also discussed. 

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In 2015, Italy introduced a new legal form—“benefit corporation” (società benefit)—that provides legal status to companies that have one or more common benefit objectives in addition to the profit-seeking goal. Italian benefit corporations are obligated by law to operate in a responsible, sustainable, and transparent way and to include the interests of different stakeholders in their corporate strategy, such as employees, customers, suppliers, and civil society. Italy became the first European country to introduce a legal framework for BCs and thus played the role of pioneer in the European context. This study examines the Italian case by applying textual statistical analysis on 125 benefit corporations' public mission statements, identifying the “benefit” concept emerging from the mission statements.  The findings confirm the proposition of BC as companies with underlying sustainability or community-driven values and categorize Italian BC in terms of promotion of individual skills, development of a new business model, and service to society.  Although the study does not show the evolution in time of Italian BCs' mission statements, it provides evidence of imprinting identity by the founders or owners in the first years, where the role of owners and managers of SMEs significantly influences organizations' engagement in social and environmental issues.  This study contributes to the debate on the content of mission statements by giving empirical evidence about this new form of business, and it provides some practical implications for managers, entrepreneurs, and policymakers.  

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Reporting on Corporate Governance (CG) has become central to several CG codes, rules and guidance aimed at improving managers’ accountability, especially after the high-profile corporate scandals and the global financial crisis.  Nowadays companies are requested to convey to external stakeholders, information on CG structures, as well as on CG mechanisms in place. However, while this increasing regulation worldwide brought to extensive CG disclosures, reporting on CG often appears very technical, fragmented and disconnected from other corporate disclosures, especially where the country legal environment, and in particular the fear of legal liability and litigation, increases managers’ reluctance to voluntary disclosures. Even when disclosures are mandatory, this fear of litigation influences the content, amount, readability, language and quality of disclosures.  The “Integrated Reporting Council” IRC, which has long promoted the adoption of integrated approach to corporate reporting, urges companies to show how CG, together with other corporate elements, contributes to value creation in the short, medium and long term.   It is their belief that CG reporting shall evolve towards communicating major developments that have impacted the business during the year, major challenges expected for the future and integrate key governance information with the rest of business reporting. The crucial point is not providing more disclosure on CG, but providing better disclosure, so that investors and other stakeholders will find it more and more useful to understand how—and how well—a company is governed. In this context corporate reporting (on CG) should not be considered as a communication tool only, but also as a CG mechanism which enhances corporate accountability. 

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Corporate legitimacy relies on alignment with societal norms, values, and stakeholder expectations. When companies face scandals, their legitimacy is threatened, necessitating strategic responses to restore trust. This study examines how corporate discourse enacts legitimation strategies to repair pragmatic, moral, and cognitive legitimacy. Using Volkswagen’s 2015 Dieselgate scandal as a case study, a critical discourse analysis (CDA) was conducted on the company’s public communications, including texts from its newsroom and investor relations sections.  Findings reveal that Volkswagen employed multiple legitimation strategies. To restore pragmatic legitimacy, the company reassured customers and shareholders through recall campaigns, dividend proposals, and capital increases. A monitoring strategy, symbolized by the Sustainability Council, was also emphasized to prevent future misconduct. Moral legitimacy was addressed through leadership changes, internal investigations, and public apologies, reinforcing integrity and trust. Cognitive legitimacy was rebuilt by framing Volkswagen’s core qualities as consistent with its past and future corporate identity, thus maintaining continuity in its narrative.  This study highlights the role of discourse in repairing legitimacy, demonstrating how corporate communication can shape stakeholder perceptions. The findings have implications for external corporate reporting, suggesting that strategic messaging can influence public trust even in the absence of immediate corrective actions. Additionally, by applying CDA, the study illustrates how textual representations of social events, discourse features, and legitimation strategies collectively impact audience perceptions. These insights contribute to the broader understanding of legitimacy restoration and offer guidance for corporate communication in times of crisis, particularly in high-profile scandals. 

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Organization higher attitude towards enhancing users’ co-production facilitates the best achievements in terms of separate collection results. 

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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. 

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The objective of the study is to analyze the presence of different possible combinations of corporate characteristics that lead to high sustainability performance in certified B Corporations. The analysis is based on a configurational approach and the Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA) methodology; the company characteristics considered are company size and seniority, profitability, certification experience, presence of women on the Board of Directors, and the “Born B” factor, which identifies companies that become certified within one year of their incorporation. The results indicate 4 possible configurations of characteristics that lead to a high B Impact Assessment. Compared to a nascent literature that has so far focused on analyzing the impact of B Corp certification on financial and economic performance, this study contributes to the in-depth study of the drivers of sustainability performance in B Corporations, indicating that the combination of them is relevant, rather than the separate effect of each.  

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The article analyzes internal and external corporate sustainability practices, along with supply chain agility, to achieve superior performance. Internal practices address human resources, community, and environment, while external practices focus on social and environmental sustainability of the supply chain and accountability to customers. The results are derived from a questionnaire of more than 150 manufacturing and trading companies, analyzed with fsQCA, and reveal 6 different configurations to achieve the same high sustainability performance. The identified practices and supply chain agility are key resources for managers to achieve meaningful sustainability results. The theoretical framework to explain what was found is Resource Orchestration Theory (ROT), which emphasizes the importance of the combination of practices, not their single effect. These are important implications for companies to maximize corporate sustainability through judicious resource management and strategic configuration of internal and external practices along the supply chain. 

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The relationship between corporate social responsibility (CSR) and financial performance (FP) has not been thoroughly investigated in the literature. In particular, the nature of the relationship between the two constructs has not been investigated in depth. Therefore, drawing on the resource-based view and Stakeholder theory, this study theoretically and empirically examined the relationship between economic perspective of CSR and FP analyzing the mediating role of competitive advantage under the empirical settings of the downstream Oil and Gas companies of Pakistan. Based on the 178 responses from the managerial level employees of these firms, the empirical outcomes stands with the assumption of the study that the implementation of CSR in the Oil and Gas industry is economically driven and have a positive relationship with FP, while competitive advantage partially mediates the relationship between economic CSR and FP. The outcomes of the study carry the important managerial and practical implications for Oil and Gas firms which are fallen in the business case.   

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This study presents the results of an empirical analysis of the components of sustainable business models (SBMs) in the dairy sector, in relation to relevant organizational characteristics for the company (size, legal form, and type of production) and using as keys the Business Model Framework and the Sustainable Value Exchange Matrix.    The analysis led to the definition of three types of sustainable business models:    “authenticity-based”: This model emphasizes the sustainability implicit in the values of the entrepreneur and the craftsmanship of production processes.   “Supply integrity-based": This model emphasizes the importance of ethics in the supply chain, including environmental compliance and economic fairness among chain actors.   “Market-oriented”: This model is based on meeting market expectations for sustainability. Companies with this model are open to product diversification and place special emphasis on environmental and economic sustainability as well as technological innovation in processes.   

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An increasing number of businesses are integrating sustainability into their management practices to address socio-environmental challenges, playing a critical role in advancing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This shift encourages companies to redesign their business models (BMs) to balance financial performance with sustainable value creation.  Despite growing interest in sustainable business models (SBMs), there is limited understanding of how these models can be implemented and aligned with the SDGs. This research focuses on Italian sustainability-oriented manufacturing companies, examining how they operationalize SBMs to achieve the SDGs.  Using a qualitative methodology and multiple case study approach, the findings reveal that these companies express a clear sustainable value proposition, operationalized through a wide variety of sustainable practices. The transition to SBMs is a voluntary, conscious decision, as these companies recognize their responsibility in driving sustainable development.   Each sustainable practice contributes differently toward specific SDGs, with companies showing equal commitment to both environmental and social dimensions. The identified practices impact 11 of the 17 SDGs, reflecting a diverse range of contributions across the goals. The study also highlights areas where companies are already making strong contributions, as well as opportunities for further development in their sustainability efforts.  While most efforts are focused on internal practices, fewer initiatives target improving living conditions outside company boundaries. Companies also emphasize the importance of partnerships with local and global stakeholders to build a sustainable ecosystem.  These results shouldn’t be considered a final point but rather as a stimulus for the development of a broader approach to the sustainability management process. The research suggests future research areas to develop this topic. 

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An increasing number of for-profit companies are elevating corporate social responsibility (CSR) to the strategic level, integrating sustainability into their management practices to address socio-environmental issues. These distinguish between benefit corporations (BCs) and certified B Corps.  Effectively communicating the organisation’s mission as sustainable and purpose-driven can produce advantages in terms of corporate image and reputation.  This study aims to identify the components of mission statements of Italian benefit corporations certified as B Corps and analyse those expressing and leading to financial and sustainability performance.   Based on content analysis and qualitative comparative analysis of multiple case studies, the findings revealed that mission statement components express a dual identity, with the environmental and social sustainability dimension being more marked than the financial dimension.   While all mission statements generated an impact beyond the boundaries of the organisation, only some statements addressed specific stakeholders, particularly customers, society and the environment; while others neglected investors and employees.   The results show that the components of the mission statements of Italian certified B Corps are related less to financial performance and more to sustainability performance, this relates to the communication strategy, which aims to make their mission statements as attractive as possible to certain stakeholders.  A higher or lower sustainability performance of certified B Corps depends on a combination of multiple factors. The results highlight the importance of producing a high-quality mission statement   Overall, the study highlights the need for regulations and the intervention of policymakers to support the development of BCs, whose activities may positively affect markets, society and the environment.  Theoretical, practical and social implications are provided, together with suggestions for future research opportunities. 

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Not just national governments and global institutions but all businesses are called to integrate sustainability into their management practices, including Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs).   This research examines the crucial role of SMEs in achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) through strategic partnerships. SMEs, which account for 90% of global businesses and a significant portion of employment, often lack the resources to pursue SDGs independently. Instead, they leverage multistakeholder collaborations to enhance their sustainability efforts. The study investigates the characteristics of effective partners that enable SMEs to contribute meaningfully to the SDGs, revealing that the success of a partnership largely depends on the characteristics of the partners.  Utilizing a qualitative methodology, this research employs a case study approach focused on the fashion industry, known for its substantial negative social and environmental impacts. The case study of the fashion brand WRAD, in collaboration with various partners, shows that the companies involved pursue the objective of sustainability in every aspect of their processes. Their collective contribution to the generation of sustainable value is outlined in terms of economic, environmental, social and purpose dimensions.  Key findings highlight the importance of proactive leadership, stakeholder engagement, and integrated communication strategies in fostering successful partnerships.  The paper suggests further research on partnership dynamics to optimize SMEs' contributions to the SDGs. 

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Knowledge is increasingly recognized as a critical resource for achieving competitive advantage, particularly in family small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), where resource constraints necessitate effective knowledge-sharing mechanisms, since there is a strong link between knowledge sharing and performance of businesses. This study explores the role of communities of practice (CoPs) in facilitating knowledge sharing within family SMEs, particularly involving both family and non-family members. CoPs, as informal groups that foster collaboration among individuals with shared interests, emerge as effective tools for transferring tacit and experiential knowledge.  Adopting a social identity approach, the study conceptualizes family firms as complex environments where overlapping family and business identities shape CoPs' social dynamics. Drawing on multiple case studies of European family SMEs analized between 2014 and 2021, the research highlights how CoPs bridge knowledge-sharing gaps between family and non-family members. The findings reveal that CoPs enable robust social interactions and knowledge exchange irrespective of hierarchical positions, with community leaders playing pivotal roles in maintaining the group’s function as a knowledge-sharing mechanism.  The study underscores the owning family's essential role in fostering alignment around innovative ideas and supporting the knowledge-acquisition process while also facilitating knowledge acquisition from external collaborators. Additionally, intergenerational participation within CoPs enhances innovation by integrating diverse skills, cultures, and goals of the stakeholders involved.  The evidence emphasizes how CoPs empower decision-making processes, drive innovation, and support the development of new products and solutions.  This research contributes to the literature on knowledge sharing in family firms, offering practical insights into the operationalization of CoPs and proposing directions for future studies to optimize knowledge management in SMEs. 

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Integrated Reporting (IR) is transforming corporate disclosure by fostering transparency and strategic risk communication. To support IR adoption, the International Integrated Reporting Council (IIRC) provides principle-based guidance through its International Framework (IIRF), outlining key principles and content elements for preparing an integrated report. IR encourages organisations to integrate reporting and disclosure within well-established risk management frameworks.  Preparing risk disclosure within an integrated report involves multiple organisational actors and departments. For instance, the finance department may gather information from risk management, while other departments work to link risks with business strategy and performance. This study explores the organisational mechanisms of change underlying reporting challenges related to risk disclosure. Through an in-depth analysis of a multinational chemical company that has published annual integrated reports since 2013, the study examines interactions between organisational actors, the role of risk management frameworks, and the preparation process. Interviews with IR preparers and analysis of reports from 2012 to 2020 provide insights into these dynamics.  The study identifies three main challenges in IR risk disclosure: (1) identifying key risks associated with value creation, (2) clarifying risk sources and management strategies, and (3) explaining how key risks connect to strategy and value creation. To address these challenges, organisations employ mechanisms of change such as cross-functional teams, stakeholder engagement, and benchmarking.  Findings highlight the performative role of the IIRF and risk management frameworks, which act as facilitators of organisational dialogue rather than mere guidelines. Practical implications suggest leveraging collaborations and diverse expertise to enhance risk disclosure and strategic decision-making in IR. 

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Using a qualitative methodological approach, the study examines the relationship between the mission statements of 161 Italian B Corps and their social impact performance as measured by the B Impact Assessment (BIA).   The research combined several qualitative methods: content analysis, text mining and fsQCA in a homogeneous research design to explore the content of B Corps' mission statements and their influence on social impact performance. The results reveal that B Corp mission statements are complex in nature, combining elements related to philosophy and values, environmental protection, and social benefits with elements that are more distinctly entrepreneurial in nature, such as the drive toward success in markets and economic performance. In addition, content-rich mission statements are associated with better social impact performance, highlighting the role of the mission statement in creating identity and imparting differentiation among B Corp. Finally, in addition to contributing to the strategic literature on socially oriented businesses, this study offers practical recommendations for B Corp entrepreneurs and managers to create clear mission statements that promote positive social impact. 

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Sustainability practices should produce positive effects on business and society. The literature has mainly dealt with the relationship between environmental sustainability practices and financial performance. Few empirical studies have addressed the social dimension of sustainability.    This article seeks to fill these gaps and contribute to social sustainability studies by hypothesizing a positive correlation between corporate social sustainability practices--to employees and the community--and corporate social performance, through the role of mediators of social sustainability orientation and long-term orientation.    Social Identity Theory and Practice-based view are employed to explain the hypothesized relationships. Data were collected through a survey of a sample of Italian companies in the manufacturing and trade sectors. A two-stage structural equation model was applied to test the hypothesized relationships and mediation effects.   The results reveal that when social sustainability practices are supported by a strong social and long-term orientation, it triggers the process of social identification that leads to better social performance. In essence, orientation coupled with practices- and not the practices themselves-can explain the differences in performance among enterprises. In order to succeed in improving social impacts, managers and policy makers should increase awareness among enterprises to also take care of the cultural aspects of sustainability. 

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The article discusses the topic of sustainability governance and control through the case study of a manufacturing company (SIT SpA). In particular, the roles and decision-making mechanisms at the senior leadership and management team level are described, and the key role of the Sustainability Director as a point of contact that facilitates sustainability strategy planning and control, with an approach that combines top-down and bottom-up flows. The role of the sustainability plan in formalizing outlined strategies, making them consistent with business strategies, and ensuring effective implementation is also described. 

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Over the past decade, sustainability-oriented enterprises have emerged, driven not only by profit motives but also by their commitment to serving societal wellbeing and environmental stewardship, notably B-corps.  This shift produced distinct but intricately connected research domains, such as social and sustainable entrepreneurship.   Social entrepreneurship is a process leading entrepreneurs to pursue social ends rather than profit, to drive social change, whereas sustainable entrepreneurship is the combination of social and environmental entrepreneurship and analyses how entrepreneurs deal with issues such as pollution, climate change, deforestation, and other ecological transgressions.  While existing literature reviews address either social or sustainable entrepreneurship, studies systematizing the convergences and divergences of both simultaneously are lacking.  To fill this gap, this research endeavors to identify the differences and convergences between the two by comprehensively examining the existing academic literature and tries to identify future research paths from their interconnectedness.  The research entails a systematic literature review covering 209 articles published between 2001 and 2022. As a result, convergences and divergences related to enablers, impact, business models, financial constraints, and fundraising instruments were identified.   Recognizing the significance and diversity of enablers for social and sustainable entrepreneurship empowers entrepreneurs to incorporate them into their business strategies.   From a policy development perspective, this review underscores the imperative need for supportive policies that facilitate and promote social and sustainable entrepreneurship.  This article concludes by providing insights about knowledge gaps associated with the role of entrepreneurs, networks, impact measurement, business model innovation, and the capital structure of social and sustainable ventures. 

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Healthcare organizations have a significant carbon footprint due to their substantial energy consumption and waste generation. Operating 24h a day using high-power electronic equipment and producing thousands of tons of different types of waste, they account for approximately 4-5% of total greenhouse gas emissions.  Despite the demand for healthcare organisations to reduce their negative environmental impact and develop effective green practices, policy makers and practitioners still lack a holistic view of how to proceed.  This paper aims to investigate the impact of Green Organizational Practices (GOPs) on Climate Change Mitigation Performance (CCMP) within publicly owned hospitals, particularly in the English NHS, which has pledged to achieve net-zero emissions by 2040.   On the one hand, the results point out that, when considered individually, the practice that seems to play the most decisive role in improving environmental performance is green energy procurement. Therefore, hospitals with limited resources could prioritise the purchase of energy from certified renewable sources to get a higher CCMP.  On the other hand, the findings also highlight how the impact of individual GOPs on CCMP can depend on the presence or absence of other practices. Specifically, when a healthcare organisation engages in green energy procurement and this is aligned with an environmentally-oriented strategy for the management of estates and facilities, the practices of having an energy manager and a waste manager combine interchangeably. Conversely, when the environmental strategy does not play a major role, this can be offset by the presence of both management roles, i.e., energy and waste manager.  Regarding implications for practice, the coordination and strategic alignment of different green practices are of paramount importance. Hospital managers should prioritise the integration of these practices by identifying and leveraging their synergies and interactions. As far as policy making is concerned, the findings suggest that environmental regulations and sector standards should be designed to take into account the integrated nature of green practices, allowing individual hospitals the flexibility to adapt and shape their climate change initiatives. 

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 A novel competitive landscape requires managers to innovate business models. Drawing on a theoreticalframework that classifies Business Model Innovations (BMI), the paper contributes to the literature studying businessmodel innovation toward sustainability in outdoor fitness equipment (OFE). The OFE is an empirical setting worthinvestigating because emerging trends disrupt the fitness industry. The Pandemic has shifted how these firms deliver their services. The concept of wellness has evolved from “being in shape” to “achieving a well-being state,” which includes mental, spiritual, and physical health. Differently from the pre-pandemic period, consumers’ focus is on feeling better rather than looking better physically. Relying on a case study approach and using multiple semi-structured interviews, the paper offers empirical evidence of BMI in the OFE. The company innovated its business model (BM), embracing novelty and differentiation and moving from rethinking customer segmentation. Further, the case shows how BMI widens value creation toward a sustainable path, generating social and environmental value. The value chain and the company's ability to partner with its suppliers are pivotal. While the challenges generated by changes in customers’ habits trigger the BMI, the suppliers’ know-how and alignment with the company’s value proposition drove the innovation toward a SBM. The paper contributes to the literature on BMI and SBM. The evidence allows future research to explore how partnerships among companies operating along the same value chain emerge for the sake of the BMI toward sustainability. Practical and managerial implications are offered.

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