Incorporating sustainable business practices into company strategy
Incorporating sustainable business practices into company strategy
Fowler S.J., Hope C. Business Strategy and the Environment, January 2007, Vol. 16 No. 1, Start page: 26, No. of pages: 13
Purpose – To test the validity of a previously presented sustainable development model. Design/methodology/approach – Identifies the model as Hart’s three-strategy framework, gives the three strategies as pollution prevention, product stewardship and sustainable development, and asks, following Hart, if the three strategies have to be followed sequentially or if they can be executed in parallel. Answers the question by studying the US apparel company,Patagonia, looks at the theories/perspectives drawn on by Hart to develop the framework, i.e. industrial organization, resource-based view, strategic management and the natural resource-based view, profiles Patagonia’s founding and development, names senior managers interviewed, and explains that Patagonia is considered to be at the leading edge of sustainability. Findings– Confirms that Patagonia is a leader on sustainability issues, having made progress, simultaneously, on all three strategies in Hart’s framework,pointing to partnering with, and learning from, non-governmental organizations regarding use of organic cotton and accepting product life-cycle responsibility,as evidence of the company’s efforts in the three areas. Research limitations/implications – Acknowledges generalization issues of using a case-study methodology, and calls for future research to investigate sustainability in one industry. Originality/value – Demonstrates both the importance of company values and that sustainable business practices can be profitable.ISSN: 0964-4733
Keywords: Clothing, Corporate strategy, Environmental management,Pollution control, Product lifecycle, Social responsibility
