Content uploaded by Friedrich Grosse-Dunker
Author content
All content in this area was uploaded by Friedrich Grosse-Dunker
Content may be subject to copyright.
A preview of the PDF is not available
Sustainability-Oriented Innovation
Abstract
Sustainability-oriented innovation (SOI): the commercial introduction of a new (or improved) product (service), product-service system, or pure service which – based on a traceable (qualitative or quantitative) comparative analysis – leads to environmental and (or) social benefits over the prior version’s physical life-cycle ('from cradle to grave').
... Bedeau et al. (2021) identify technological innovation as one of four critical levers -multiparty collaboration, data and evidence, technological innovation, and coherent policies and investments -to address the challenges faced by food systems in the Mediterranean region. Hansen and Grosse-Dunker (2013) define sustainability-oriented innovation (SOI) as "the commercial introduction of a new (or improved) product (service), product-service system, or pure service which -based on a traceable (qualitative or quantitative) comparative analysis -leads to environmental and (or) social benefits over the prior version's physical life cycle ('from cradle to grave')." As a result of market and consumer needs, companies in the agri-food industry must innovate sustainably in the product, production and packaging phases to strengthen their corporate image and gain consumer recognition. ...
... When categorising innovation according to its drivers, innovation is classified as technology-driven, market-pull, design-driven, regulatory-driven/pull or value-driven (Cagliano et al., 2016). Most of the literature classify SOI based on only one criterion as listed, with only a small amount of literature using two dimensions to classify SOI, for example Hansen and Grosse-Dunker (2013) classify SOI according to the goal dimension and the lifecycle dimension. It's because that they don't discuss a large number of specific SOIs. ...
... In order to give companies in the agri-food supply chain a more direct view of the SOI in their own sector, in the second dimension, we classify SOI according to the 'cradle-to-cradle' (Hansen and Grosse-Dunker, 2013) life cycle stages of the products in which it plays a role. There are five life cycle stages of a product that are important and where the main sustainability impacts occur: supply chain, production, packaging or distribution, use and end of life (Hansen and Grosse-Dunker, 2012). ...
In light of the increasing demand for sustainable development, the agri-food industry is under pressure to make the transition towards sustainability. Innovation has been identified as a key driver for this transformation. However, the agri-food industry, which in many countries is dominated by small and medium-sized enterprises, is highly sensitive to the benefits, costs and potential risks of sustainability-oriented innovation. At the same time, because of the low propensity of countries in the Mediterranean region to innovate, an in-depth exploration of innovation is necessary. This paper presents a review of the costs and benefits of specific sustainability-oriented innovations, not only economic but also social and environmental, to provide a guide for researchers and adopters of sustainability-oriented innovations in the Mediterranean region. To achieve this goal, this paper classifies the elements being reviewed according to the nature of the innovation and stages of the product life cycle it covers. This paper has implications for farmers, business managers, regulators and policy makers in the Mediterranean region.
... We used the partial least squares (PLS) method to test the hypotheses proposed herein, which consists of SEM based on variance. The key characteristics of PLS-SEM, such as the ability to deal with small samples, the possibility of testing complex models, and the fact that it does not assume the normality of the data (Hair et al., 2014), were decisive for choosing this analysis method. The PLS simultaneously allows the reliability and validity of the measures of theoretical constructs (measurement model) to be assessed and the relationships between these constructs (structural model) to be estimated. ...
... For the analysis of reliability and convergent validity, the factor loadings of each indicator (>0.7), average variance extracted (AVE; >0.50), composite reliability (CR; >0.70), and Cronbach's alpha (Alpha) of latent variables (LV) were used (Hair et al., 2014;Bido and Silva, 2019). The values obtained in this step are listed in Table 3. (Hair et al., 2014). ...
... For the analysis of reliability and convergent validity, the factor loadings of each indicator (>0.7), average variance extracted (AVE; >0.50), composite reliability (CR; >0.70), and Cronbach's alpha (Alpha) of latent variables (LV) were used (Hair et al., 2014;Bido and Silva, 2019). The values obtained in this step are listed in Table 3. (Hair et al., 2014). For the discriminant validity of the measurement model, we evaluated whether each of the indicators obtained higher loadings in their own constructs than in any other LV. ...
This study aimed to analyse the relationship between adopting
sustainability-oriented innovation practices and the business models of Brazilian industrial companies. A quantitative study was conducted using a 109-question survey with companies that benefited from the Lei do Bem (Law of Good), and quantitative data analysis was performed by structural equation modelling. The results indicated that sustainability-oriented organisational
innovation, product innovation, and innovation practices positively influenced the companies’ business models. By addressing sustainable innovation in the context of the business model of industrial companies, this study contributes to reducing the negative socio-environmental impacts inherent to industrial
activities and inserts sustainability through innovation into their business models.
... Although SOI studies are advancing, they primarily relate only to its general process and outcomes (Hansen & Große-Dunker, 2013). Studies of system-building SOI and how companies shape ecosystems and accelerate their readiness have been overlooked. ...
... System-building SOI development in organizations involves significant challenges such as integrating a wide range of stakeholders and thoroughly understanding related user needs (Hansen & Große-Dunker, 2013;Klewitz & Hansen, 2014). Although these challenges are also relevant to conventional innovation, they are significant for SOI development. ...
Sustainability orientation is increasingly becoming a focus in companies' top management. In addition to social, environmental, and economic impacts, a sustainability-based strategy can be a source of excellence for the company in the future. Using the Network for Business Sustainability model as a lens, this study examines how companies are involved in the challenge of forming an ecosystem that is still not mature when developing the electric bus business. It includes how companies change their business orientation, identify and collaborate with stake-holders, and encourage the acceleration of regulatory existence. The company and new business' top management were interviewed to understand the company's orientation as part of a group of companies. A total of six interviews were conducted for this purpose. The factor of reconceptualizing the business's purpose and
... Although the literature on corporate sustainability and innovation management has provided clear evidence that: (1) the relationship between open innovation and SOI is fast becoming a key topic (Ahn et al., 2019;Reficco et al., 2018;Slotegraaf, 2012;Von Geibler et al., 2019); (2) the integration of partners in the innovation process is a crucial capability to advance towards SOI (Hansen & Grosse-Dunker, 2012); (3) firms can benefit from open innovation to obtain the proper knowledge to develop new sustainable products, processes or businesses models (Kennedy et al., 2017); and (4) firms collaborating with external actors are more likely to create new or improved products that achieve market success (Melander, 2017), few studies have identified and summarised the mechanisms that occur in open innovation initiatives oriented towards a sustainability purpose. ...
This study systematically reviews the scientific literature on the role of open innovation in addressing current and emerging societal and environmental challenges. To do so, we analysed the what , how , who and why of integrating external partners for sustainability purposes. We found a clear predominance of open innovation mechanisms to develop environmental innovations rather than innovations focused on a triple bottom line. We identified at least four mechanisms associated with the inbound mode of open innovation (crowdsourcing, lead‐user workshops, intermediation, and experiments and discussion sessions) and 10 mechanisms related to the coupled mode of open innovation (alliance, business‐non‐profit engagement, co‐creation, joint ventures, cooperation, collaborative innovation contests, coopetition, cross‐sector partnerships, joint development projects, and innovation networks). Even though sustainability‐oriented innovation promises to be a source of societal transformation and entrepreneurial opportunities, we found that firms can face some tensions when simultaneously addressing financial, environmental and social purposes.
... This is while internal firm members are often not fully aware of the full range of potential social and environmental impacts. The interaction with a wider range of stakeholder groups (e.g., suppliers, clients, policymakers, non-governmental organizations, community members, and local authorities) and their systematic integration in the innovation process is key to advancing toward Sustainability-Oriented Innovation (Hansen & Grosse-Dunker, 2012). Although Open Innovation has been mainly driven by business objectives, societal challenges have more recently turned the attention to a wider range of objectives to which Open Innovation is relevant (McGahan et al., 2021). ...
Open Innovation and Sustainability‐Oriented Innovation are undoubtedly two of the most debated topics of the last decades, gaining the interest of policymakers, practitioners, and scholars all over the world. Even if they have been usually described as two independent research fields, there are some emblematic examples presenting interplay and synergy between these topics, represented either by the hybrid perspectives of Open Sustainable Innovation , that is, the Open Innovation approach acting as an enabler of Sustainability‐Oriented Innovation, and Sustainable Open Innovation , which instead analyzes how firms developing Sustainability‐Oriented Innovation also adopt the Open Innovation approach. On the basis of these two perspectives and through a systematic literature review, this paper investigates the relationships between the Open Innovation and Sustainability‐Oriented Innovation approaches and frames these relationships by developing an innovative framework, which highlights the main aspects characterizing the hybrid perspectives of Open Sustainable Innovation and Sustainable Open Innovation . The proposed framework highlights the Open Innovation practices and strategies enabling Sustainability‐Oriented Innovation, as well as the contextual factors enabling both practices and strategies for Sustainability‐Oriented Innovation. In addition, it shows how firms developing Sustainability‐Oriented Innovation have a similar orientation toward the adoption of the Open Innovation approach both in terms of how they engage stakeholders, and the innovation capabilities they develop. Finally, a research agenda identifying the central issues and the key research gaps is offered for further development in future studies.
... 4), ecoinnovation is the "production, application or exploitation of a good or service, production process, organizational structure, management or business method that is new to the company or employee and which results, over its life cycle, in reduced environmental risk, pollution and negative impacts of resource use (including energy use) compared to relevant alternatives". According to some authors [32,33], there is a broad path to achieving eco-innovation, which may arise from several areas with the creation of ecoinnovative processes from "clean" production; these are products that are made from recyclable or recycled materials, are achieved through renewable energies, and are managed by eco-innovative organizations concerned with working conditions and organizational well-being. ...
The textile industry sector is classified as the most polluting sector and has the greatest direct impact on the life of the entire ecosystem. The main objective of this article is to study the role of sustainability (eco-innovation and circular economy) in the internationalization of the textile industry in Portugal. For this, a qualitative methodology was used, through semi-structured interviews applied to four managers of the textile sector, in the north of Portugal. The results of the interviews were submitted to a content analysis and data coding system using the NVIVO software. The results show that sustainability is a pillar of direct and/or indirect internationalization, either through the demand of the consumer for sustainable products or through the availability of the products produced by companies; this is motivated mainly by customers, even if the high price of these products when they reach the market is concerning. With the results achieved, this article shows that the determining factor for eco-innovative and recycled products is the price factor. The high price that eco-innovative and recycled products have when they reach the market is the main concern that the companies interviewed have in terms of investing more in this type of product. However, they claim that there is a clear increase in demand for these products and that it is a differentiating factor in international markets. It also became evident that the existence of products from the circular economy increases the companies’ value and acceptance in international markets. This article provides empirical evidence that shows that the transition from a linear to a circular economy requires large investments in most cases; however, it is currently a competitive advantage and a positioning in a differentiating sector, increasing the brand’s social responsibility.
Amaç: Sağlık çalışanları üzerinde yapılan bu çalışmanın amacı, pozitif ses çıkartmanın işten ayrılma niyeti üzerine etkisinde lider-üye etkileşiminin aracı rolünü belirlemektir. Yöntem: Çalışmanın evrenini İstanbul’da hizmet veren özel bir hastanede çalışan 450 sağlık personeli oluşturmaktadır. Araştırma sonucunda elde edilen verilere yönelik açıklayıcı faktör analizi (AFA) ve ölçeklerin yapı geçerliliği için doğrulayıcı faktör analizi (DFA) yapılmış, uyum iyilikleri olumlu sonuç vermiştir. Ölçüm modeline göre, ilişkilerin belirlenmesine yönelik yapısal eşitlik modeli (YEM) uygulanmış ve sonuçlar değerlendirilmiştir. Araştırmada ana boyut ve alt boyut ilişkilerinin belirlenmesi amaçlı korelasyon analizi uygulanmıştır. Bulgular: Çalışmada elde edilen sonuçlara göre; pozitif ses çıkartma boyutu işten ayrılma niyetini istatistiksel olarak negatif yönde anlamlı %42,1 etkilerken, pozitif ses çıkartma boyutu lider-üye etkileşimini pozitif yönde anlamlı %39, etkilemektedir. Öte yandan, lider-üye etkileşimi boyutu işten ayrılma niyetini negatif yönde anlamlı %33 etkilemektedir. Sonuç: Araştırmada, sağlık sektörün de pozitif ses çıkartma davranışı arttıkça işten ayrılma niyetinin azalacağı sonucuna ulaşılmıştır. Aynı zamanda çalışanların fikirlerini paylaşımında liderleri ile olan ilişkinin samimiyetinin işten ayrılma niyeti üzerinde önemli bir katkı sağladığı görülmektedir.
Amaç: İşletmeler, Ar-ge odaklı değer yaratan pazarlama faaliyetlerinin gelecek kuşaklar üzerinde olumsuz etkilerini önlemek için sürdürülebilir inovasyona yönelmektedir. Sürdürülebilir inovasyondan sağlanan değer, sürdürülebilir gelişmedir ve bu gelişmeye yönelik pazarlama stratejileri izlenmelidir. Araştırmanın amacı; Kütahya seramik sektöründeki uluslararası firmanın inovasyon odaklı stratejik pazarlama hedefleri ve araçlarını, sürdürülebilirlik değer önerilerini, bünyesi içindeki ve dışındaki sürdürülebilir inovasyona etki eden faktörleri ile inovasyon özellikleri bakımından nasıl sınıflandırıldığını belirmektir. Yöntem: Araştırmada nitel tasarımdan yararlanılmış ve yargısal örnekleme kullanılmıştır. Araştırmada; öncelikle firmanın üst düzey yöneticileri ile yüz yüze görüşmelerden birincil veriler toplanmış, sonrasında kurumsal web sayfaları başta olmak üzere firma içi kayıtlar ve ikincil verilerin analiziyle çoklu veri kaynaklarından yararlanılmıştır. Bulgular: Araştırma bulgularında, firmanın sürdürülebilir inovasyonu bir yatırım olarak gördüğü; farklı pazarlarda farklı inovasyon odaklı stratejik pazarlama hedeflerine sahip olduğu; sürdürülebilir inovasyonunun gelişiminde, tüm iç ve dış faktörlerin etkili olduğu; sürdürülebilir inovasyon özellikleri bakımından toplumsal değişimi hedefleyen “sistem kurma” aşamasında sınıflandırılabileceği belirlenmiştir. Sonuç: Seramik sektöründe yapılan araştırmanın sonucu, literatürü destekler niteliktedir.
This article is based on a 1998 working paper from the authors. It was originally published in Strategy+Business n. 26, first quarter 2002, and is one of the basis for the CK Prahalad best seller of the same title. Tha article argues about the possibility and opportunity to transform the bottom of the pyramid market in a profitable market.
A Product-Service System (PSS) is an integrated combination of products and services. This Western concept embraces a service-led competitive strategy, environmental sustainability, and the basis to differentiate from competitors who simply offer lower priced products. This paper aims to report the state-of-the-art of PSS research by presenting a clinical review of literature currently available on this topic. The literature is classified and the major outcomes of each study are addressed and analysed. On this basis, this paper defines the PSS concept, reports on its origin and features, gives examples of applications along with potential benefits and barriers to adoption, summarizes available tools and methodologies, and identifies future research challenges. © IMechE 2007.
During the last decade, pressure on companies to transcend the focus on economic success and technological innovation in order to address more ecologically and socially desirable outcomes has increased. Commitment to sustainability-oriented innovation is still rare in the textile and apparel industry, but there exist first case examples of highly eco-innovative companies. This article presents an in-depth case study of the sustainable company manomama which manufactures individualised clothes for women, men and children in Southern Germany. Ecologically harmless and thereof mostly organic material is procured only regionally and highly experienced workers from the ancient textile region have been provided with secure, full- and part-time jobs. The article discusses the major challenges of manomama when entering business (knowledge and experience, site and machinery, sup-pliers, staff and supporters) and presents the innovative solutions the founder identified to address these. In addition, the article derives implications for traditional companies.
Companies operating in business-to-consumer markets have been increasingly pressured to transcend the focus on economic and technological innovations and to address more environmental-friendly and socially desirable products and services, i.e. to engage in Sustainability-oriented Innovation (SOI). This paper examines the suitability of innovation contests to generate SOIs and the resulting degree of innovativeness in conventional and ecological terms. Using a case study of an innovation contest in the shoe industry, we derive three strands of results. First, a large majority of the submissions belongs to the category of product care. Second, submissions categorised as ‘greenwashing’ receive a better average assessment, although technically equal to the ones of product care. Third, using eco-impact class as the first axis, and the (conventional) innovativeness criteria – as judged by the experts – as the second axis, we develop an eco impact-innovativeness grid. It illustrates that a vast majority of user submissions falls into the classes incremental innovation and radical conventional innovation. Results go beyond previous studies and thus contribute to the fields of open innovation and SOI.
A considerable body of literature deals with the creation of economic value while increasing corporate environmental and social performance. Some publications even focus on the business case for sustainability which aims at increasing corporate economic value through environmental or social measures. The existence of a business case for sustainability is, however, mostly seen as an ad hoc measure, a supplement to the core business, or simply a coincidence. As a contrast, this paper argues that business model innovations may be required to support a systematic, ongoing creation of business cases for sustainability. A framework for business model innovation is proposed as a means to strategically create business cases on a regular basis as an inherent, deeply integrated element of business activities.
Ecodesign is a promising approach to sustainable production and consumption, Four different types of ecodesign innovations are distinguished. Product improvements and redesign (types 1 and 2) can realize eco-efficiency improvements of up to 80 per cent (a factor of 5). To achieve the breakthrough to sustainability, however, product function and system innovations (types 3 and 4) will be needed. It is recommended that implementation of these concepts be promoted through extensive demonstration programmes and activities by national-level organisms. Government actions in support of ecodesign innovations in the near future are badly needed.
The concept of shared value—which focuses on the connections between societal and economic progress—has the power to unleash the next wave of global growth. An increasing number of companies known for their hard-nosed approach to business—such as Google, IBM, Intel, Johnson & Johnson, Nestlé, Unilever, and Wal-Mart—have begun to embark on important shared value initiatives. But our understanding of the potential of shared value is just beginning. There are three key ways that companies can create shared value opportunities: By reconceiving products and markets • By redefining productivity in the value chain • By enabling local cluster development • Every firm should look at decisions and opportunities through the lens of shared value. This will lead to new approaches that generate greater innovation and growth for companies—and also greater benefits for society. The capitalist system is under siege. In recent years business increasingly has been viewed as a major cause of social, environmental, and economic problems. Companies are widely perceived to be prospering at the expense of the broader community. Even worse, the more business has begun to embrace corporate responsibility, the more it has been blamed for society's failures. The legitimacy of business has fallen to levels not seen in recent history. This diminished trust in business leads political leaders to set policies that undermine competitiveness and sap economic growth. Business is caught in a vicious circle. A big part of the problem lies with companies themselves, which remain trapped in an outdated approach to value creation that has emerged over the past few decades. They continue to view value creation narrowly, optimizing short-term financial performance in a bubble while missing the most important customer needs and ignoring the broader influences that determine their longer-term success. How else could companies overlook the well-being of their customers, the depletion of natural resources vital to their businesses, the viability of key suppliers, or the economic distress of the communities in which they produce and sell? How else could companies think that simply shifting activities to locations with ever lower wages was a sustainable "solution" to competitive challenges? Government and civil society have often exacerbated the problem by attempting to address social weaknesses at the expense of business. The presumed trade-offs between economic efficiency and social progress have been institutionalized in decades of policy choices.
The author proposes a framework to position ecopreneurship in relation to other forms of environmental management. The framework provides a reference for managers to introduce ecopreneurship. Five basic positions are distinguished according to the degree of environmental orientation of a company's core business and the market impact of the company: environmental administrators, environmental managers, alternative activists, bioneers and ecopreneurs. The author suggests an approach to the qualitative operationalisation of ecopreneurship and to how to assess the position of a company in a classification matrix. The degree of environmental orientation in the company is assessed on the basis of environmental goals and policies, the ecological profile of the range of products and services, the organisation of environmental management in the company and the communication of environmental issues. The other dimension of ecopreneurship examined, the market impact of the company, is measured on the basis of market share, sales growth and the reactions of competitors. The approach is then applied to seven case studies of companies. The case studies show that the basic concept of ecopreneurship is applicable. The company representatives saw the approach as helpful in clarifying their position in ecopreneurial terms. The main benefit of the approach is that it provides a framework for self-assessment and indications for improvement.
This case is about a boutique chocolate manufacturer's decision to grow. Zotter, an Austrian company that was a pioneer in the organic and Fairtrade chocolate movement, uses the traditional confit technique to make premium hand-scooped chocolates in unusual and innovative flavor combinations. Having done many novel things to educate the market about the value of premium, organic and Fairtrade chocolate, Zotter consolidated its market position within the premium segment of the Austrian market for chocolate. The company only recently started to sell its product outside Austria. However, the time- and labor-intensive manufacturing process and the high prices of Zotter chocolates limit the scalability of the company, even though the founder desires to grow. While the founder has many ideas for the firm, it is not clear which path would be optimal for the kind of growth he desires. The case provides students an opportunity to discuss how entrepreneurs create markets for novel products, and how they can consolidate their position.Learning Objective:To demonstrate to students how entrepreneurs create markets for novel products, and how they can consolidate their position.