Which Factors Drive Sustainability Initiatives in Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises? A Multiple-Case Study in the Leather-Footwear Industry in Brazil

Abstract

This study analysed which factors drive (or not) the adoption of sustainability initiatives in small and medium-sized enterprises. Through qualitative approach, we collected data (semi-structured interviews, observations and documents) from eleven organizations from the leather-footwear industry in southern Brazil. This study contributes to the existing literature in two ways. First, the factors are structured into a framework according to two perspectives: (1) internal or external and (2) facilitators or inhibitors. Regarding external factors, the findings show legislation is the only factor that influences all the organizations. However, when legislation was the only factor, it is related to organisations with low levels of presence of sustainability initiatives. The lack of government incentives was found to be an important inhibitor to the adoption of sustainability initiatives. The second factor, according to our findings indicates that there are two possible paths lead to the adoption of sustainability initiatives by SMEs: one based on the values held by the leaders and members of the organisation and the other guided by concern for the organisation's reputation. We identified a possible link between the presence of women in management and the entrepreneur's vision regarding the adoption of sustainability initiatives. Our framework can be used in quantitative studies to establish which factors are dependent and/or independent variables in order to identify the degree of correlation between them.

Proposal for a simplified sustainability report for small and mediumsized enterprises

“…When looking at the adoption of sustainable practices by SMEs in particular, it is also necessary to consider the characteristics of these entities, such as: operational and structural limitations, including scarcity of financial resources, small number of employees, lack of time for strategic planning, and simplified internal decision-making processes; lack of actionable tools, especially those oriented towards the adoption of sustainable practices (Bos-Brouwers, 2010;Santos and Silva, 2010;Corazza, 2018); and external factors, such as the lack of government incentives (Petrini et al, 2017).…”

Inherent Commitment to Sustainability Among Basque Adventure Tourism Enterprises Despite Crisis

“…The government is the major external factor that drives enterprises to adopt sustainability initiatives (Gandhi, Thanki and Thakkar, 2018;Petrini, Back and Dos Santos, 2017). According to researchers, legislation and regulation (Baden et al, 2011); financial support (Agheli, 2017) in the form of loans, grants, and tax concessions; and other economic benefits facilitate easy adoption and behavioral change in enterprises toward sustainable practices.…”

“…The third external driver is networks and alliances. The limited resources of enterprises lead to a greater dependence on external support, which favors the opportunity to establish alliances with other companies and thus increase sustainable practices (Petrini et al, 2017;Revell and Backburn, 2007;Shi and Tsai, 2020). Turismo, 50, (2022), 1-20 The fourth external driver is suppliers.…”

“…We found different studies that analyzed the importance of the owners' attitudes, beliefs, values, and interests as factors that lead to the implementation of sustainable practices in enterprises (e.g., Nulkar, 2014;Petrini et al, 2017;Yadav et al, 2018). Several authors have identified owners' lack of knowledge about the impacts and benefits of sustainability as one of the most important factors in undertaking this type of strategy (Petrini et al, 2017). Some entrepreneurs consider sustainability to be a higher cost that does not produce economic benefits.…”

Sostenibilidad y moda en la industria del cuero, una revisión sistemática

“…En resumen, los consumidores responden mejor a una actividad de rsc cuando esta demuestra el compromiso de la empresa, de ser socialmente responsable, en lugar de simplemente reforzar la imagen de la marca. Al centrarse en el objetivo intrínseco, los operadores pueden establecer un sentido de conexión entre su(s) marca(s) y las percepciones de los consumidores, un fenómeno denominado identidad consumidor-empresa (Durrani, 2018;Singh et al, 2022) que pueden fomentar un sentido de enlace a la comprensión de los mercados con la empresa (Haouari et al, 2018;Petrini et al, 2017) Las empresas que se comportan de manera socialmente responsable son objetivos más atractivos para la identificación y esto puede fomentar un fuerte apego entre algunos consumidores, que luego podrían convertirse en "defensores de marca", capaces de un boca a boca positivo (Özcan y Elçi, 2020) y, por el contrario, los consumidores pueden castigar a las empresas que crean un falso sentido de responsabilidad social.…”