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Although companies have shown a growing awareness of the importance of Corporate Sustainability (CS), integration of CS into their business activities is still problematic. Most of the CS research focuses on large corporations, with limited discussions of Small and Medium Sized Enterprises (SMEs). Research on SMEs has shown that most CS activities have been developed in isolation, and have not yet been totally integrated into the business activities. This research aims to understand how SMEs integrate CS into their business activities. Eighteen SMEs were analysed. These SMEs were, on their explicit request, supported in enhancing the integration of CS into their business activities. The external change agents connected to this consultancy firm applied four CS integration tools, which was based on their own experience in supporting the integration of CS in companies. The data generated through the application of these tools gives this research a specific, external change agent perspective that contributes to the understanding of CS integration. Tables including the tool data of all companies were used to analyse all eighteen cases as well as to enable a cross case comparison. The data showed that a balance proved to be necessary between a physical and social focus in the SMEs' vision on CS, the CS integration activities, the conditions for the CS change agent and the CS assessment. The research also found that although companies in a more advanced CS growth stage have more management system certifications, the management system itself is not used to ensure CS integration.

This article argues for greater attention to be paid to the dual and embedded nature of business. We propose that a more inclusive systemic perspective is needed for the challenge of speeding up the application of 'inclusive' corporate sustainability. The key question is how an ongoing upward dynamic of transformative learning cycles can be achieved in practice. The current practice of implementing sustainability management systems, identifying key performance indicators, reporting on sustainability policies and outcomes has a strong focus on the physical dynamics in companies and (in the good cases) in their value chain. In many cases the three dimensions of issues, time and place are only addressed partially. We argue that the academic community needs to pay greater retro-and prospective attention to the social intervention dynamics, introducing checks on the assumed effects of social interventions. In order to achieve a more balanced and inclusive corporate sustainability we need to link levels of the achievement of corporate sustainability goals more strongly with (self-) assessment of the social dynamics in firms and their societal system.

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