Sustainable-oriented management as a resilience factor of firms: A case study

Journal title MANAGEMENT CONTROL
Author/s Nicoletta Fadda, Gianfranco Pischedda, Ludovico Marinò, katia Corsi
Publishing Year 2021 Issue 2021/2
Language Italian Pages 22 P. 39-60 File size 328 KB
DOI 10.3280/MACO2021-002003
DOI is like a bar code for intellectual property: to have more infomation click here

Below, you can see the article first page

If you want to buy this article in PDF format, you can do it, following the instructions to buy download credits

Article preview

FrancoAngeli is member of Publishers International Linking Association, Inc (PILA), a not-for-profit association which run the CrossRef service enabling links to and from online scholarly content.

The growing interest in sustainability affect firms and their business models. Sus-tainable business models define the way in which a firm creates shared value by promoting economic, social and environmental interests. The objective of this paper is to understand if sustainable business models - com-bined with a proper accounting system - are able to initiate effective reactions to shock moments. The authors carried out this study by analyzing Generale Conserve, particularly its brand ASdoMAR, a firm specializing in canned foods. This case study is interest-ing because Generale Conserve places particular attention on both environmental sustainability and social development. The authors derived data from semi-structured interviews in combination with documental analyses. Results highlight that being sustainable can foster the ability to react to shock moments by promot-ing organizational resilience. Results also aim to suggest an abstract framework whereby one can explore the relationship between the type of sustainable strategy, the accounting system adopted and organizational resilience.

Keywords: Sustainability management, Business model, Organizational control, Management control systems, Organizational resilience.

  1. Amit R., Zott C. (2012), Creating Value Through Business Model Innovation, MIT Sloan Management Review, 53, pp. 41-49.
  2. Andersson T., Cäker M., Tengblad S., Wickelgren M. (2019). Building traits for organizational resilience through balancing organizational structures, Scandinavian Journal of Management, 35(1), pp. 36-45.
  3. Greco G., D’Onza G. (2020), Dal controllo alla creazione del valore, Management Control, 2, pp. 5-9.
  4. Bagnoli C., Massaro M., Mas F., Demartini M. (2018), Defining the concept of business model: searching for a business model framework, International Journal of Knowledge and Systems Science, 9, pp. 48-64. DOI: 10.4018/IJKSS.2018070104
  5. Beattie V., Smith S. J. (2013), Value creation and business models: Refocusing the intellectual capital debate, The British Accounting Review, 45(4), pp. 243-254.
  6. Beritini U. (2013), Scritti di politica aziendale, Giappichelli Editore, IV edizione.
  7. Bertini U. (1977), Il sistema d’azienda. Uno schema d’analisi, Pisa, Opera universitaria.
  8. Biloslavo R., Bagnoli C., Massaro M., Cosentino A. (2020), Business model transformation toward sustainability: the impact of legitimation, Management Decision, Vol. ahead-of-print No. ahead-of-print. DOI: 10.1108/MD-09-2019-1296
  9. Bocken N., Short S. Padmakshi R, Steve E. (2013), A Value Mapping Tool for Sustainable Business Modelling. Corporate Governance: The International Journal of Business in Society, 13(5), pp. 482-497.
  10. Boons F., Lüdeke-Freund F. (2013), Business models for sustainable innovation: state-of-the-art and steps towards a research agenda, Journal of Cleaner production, 45, pp. 9-19.
  11. Burritt R.L., Schaltegger S. (2010), Sustainability accounting and reporting: fad or trend? Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, 23(7), pp. 829-846.
  12. Cassetta E., Pozzi C. (2017), Institutions, Institutional Changes and Industrial Policies for a Circular Economy, Industria, 38 (3), pp. 283-290.
  13. Chen J., Chen T.H.Y., Vertinsky I., Yumagulova L., Park C. (2013), Public-private partnerships for the development of disaster resilient communities, Journal of Contingencies and Crisis Management, 21, pp. 130-143.
  14. Ciasullo M.V., Cosimato S., Palumbo R. (2017), Improving health care quality: the implementation of whistleblowing, The TQM Journal, 29(1), pp. 167-183.
  15. Coda V. (1988), L’Orientamento strategico dell’impresa, Torino, Utet.
  16. Coutu D.L. (2002), How resilience works, Harvard Business Review, 80, pp. 46-55.
  17. Duchek S. (2020), Organizational resilience: a capability-based conceptualization, Business Research, 13(1), pp. 215-246.
  18. Epstein M.J., Buhovac A.R. (2014), Making Sustainability Work: Best Practices in Managing and Measuring Corporate Social, Environmental, and Economic Impacts. Berrett-Koehler Publishers, Oakland (CA).
  19. Evans S., Vladimirova D., Holgado M., Van Fossen K., Yang M., Silva E.A., Barlow C.Y. (2017), Business model innovation for sustainability: Towards a unified perspective for creation of sustainable business models, Business Strategy and the Environment, 26(5), pp. 597-608.
  20. Ferraris Franceschi R. (1998), Problemi attuali dell’economia aziendale, Milano, Giuffrè.
  21. Ferrero G. (1987), Impresa e management, Milano, Giuffrè.
  22. Fiorentino R., Garzella S., Lamboglia R., Mancini D. (2016), Strategie di sostenibilità: dalle motivazioni ai sistemi di misurazione della performance, Management Control, 2, pp. 115-142.
  23. Geissdoerfer M., Vladimirova D., Evans S. (2018), Sustainable business model innovation: A review. Journal of cleaner production, 198, pp. 401-416.
  24. Gittell J.H., Cameron K., Lim S., Rivas V. (2006), Relationships, layoffs, and organizational resilience: airline industry responses to September 11, Journal of Applied Behavioral Science, 42, pp. 300-329.
  25. Gonzalez J.M.G., Ramírez C.Z. (2016), Organisational communication on climate change, International Journal of Climate Change Strategies and Management, 8(2), pp. 286-316.
  26. Hamel G., Valikangas L. (2003), The quest for resilience, Harvard Business Review, 81, pp. 52-65.
  27. Joyce A., Paquin R.L. (2016), The triple layered business model canvas: A tool to design more sustainable business models, Journal of cleaner production, 135, pp. 1474-1486.
  28. Juettner U., Maklan S. (2011), Supply chain resilience in the global financial crisis: an empirical study, Supply Chain Management: An International Journal, 16, pp. 246-259.
  29. Linnenluecke M.K. (2017), Resilience in business and management research: A review of influential publications and a research agenda, International Journal of Management Reviews, 19(1), pp. 4-30.
  30. Linnenluecke M., K., Andrew G., Monika W. (2012), Extreme weather events and the critical importance of anticipatory adaptation and organizational resilience in responding to impacts, Business Strategy and the Environment, 21, pp. 17-32.
  31. Lüdeke-Freund F. (2010), Towards a conceptual framework of ‘business models for sustainability. In: Wever R., Quist J., Tukker A., Woudstra J., Boons F., Beute N. (Eds.), Knowledge Collaboration & Learning for Sustainable Innovation, Delft, The Netherlands. -- Available at: https://ssrn.com/abstract.2189922.
  32. Lüdeke-Freund F., Dembek K. (2017), Research and practice on sustainable business models: emerging field or passing fancy? Journal of Clean Production, 168, pp.1668-1678.
  33. Lueg R., Radlach R. (2016), Managing sustainable development with management control systems: A literature review, European Management Journal, 34(2), pp. 158-171.
  34. Luthans F. (2002), The need for and meaning of positive organizational behavior, Journal of Organizational Behavior, 23, pp. 695-706.
  35. Maas K., Schaltegger S., Crutzen N. (2016), Integrating corporate sustainability assessment, management accounting, control, and reporting, Journal of Clean Production, 136, pp. 237-248.
  36. Magretta J. (2002), Why business models matter, Harvard Business Review, 80(5), pp. 86-92.
  37. Maraghini M.P., Vitale G. (2018), Sistemi di controllo a supporto dello sviluppo sostenibile delle PMI del settore vitivinicolo: il caso D’Ambra vini s.r.l, Management Control, 3, pp. 111-130.
  38. Marchi L. (2019), Governo delle aziende e creazione di valore: da una prospettiva finanziaria ad una prospettiva economico-sociale, Management Control, 1, pp. 5-16.
  39. Marchi L. (2020), Dalla crisi allo sviluppo sostenibile. Il ruolo dei sistemi di misurazione e controllo, Management Control, 3, pp. 5-16.
  40. Marchini I., (1995), Il governo della piccola impresa, Vol. II – La gestione strategica, Genova ASPI/INS-EDIT.
  41. Meyer A.D. (1982), Adapting to environmental jolts. Administrative science quarterly, pp. 515-537.
  42. Neuman W. L. (2006), Social research methods: Qualitative and quantitative approaches (6th ed). Boston, MA, Pearson Allyn and Bacon.
  43. Ortiz‐de‐Mandojana N., Bansal P. (2016), The long‐term benefits of organizational resilience through sustainable business practices, Strategic Management Journal, 37(8), pp. 1615-1631.
  44. Osterwalder A., Pigneur Y., Tucci C.L. (2005), Clarifying business models: Origins, present, and future of the concept, Communications of the association for Information Systems, 16(1), 1.
  45. Osterwalder A., Pigneur Y. (2010), Business Model Generation: A Handbook for Visionaries, Game Changers, and Challengers, Hoboken, New Jersey, John Wiley & Sons.
  46. Palumbo R. (2016), L’integrazione sociosanitaria nella prospettiva delle relazioni inter-organizzative, Roma, Rirea.
  47. Palumbo R., Manna R. (2018), The art of orienteering small firms’ innovation: Illuminating the link between innovation and strategy making, International Journal of Organization Theory & Behavior, 21(4), pp. 295-314.
  48. Palumbo R., Manna R. (2018), The need for requisite variety to support growth: an organizational life cycle perspective, Journal of Strategy and Management, 11(2), pp. 241-256.
  49. Parguel B., Benoît-Moreau F., Larceneux F. (2011), How sustainability ratings might deter ‘greenwashing’: A closer look at ethical corporate communication, Journal of business ethics, 102(1), pp. 15-28.
  50. Richardson J. (2008), The business model: an integrative framework for strategy execution. Strategic Change, 17 (5e6), pp. 133-144.
  51. Rotondo F., Corsi K., Giovanelli L. (2019), The social side of sustainable business models: An explorative analysis of the low-cost airline industry Journal of Cleaner Production, 225, pp. 806-819.
  52. Sarra A., Mazzocchitti M. (2014), La dematerializzazione e i motori della crescita sostenibile, L’industria, Rivista di economia e politica industriale, 35(4), pp. 575-587.
  53. Schaltegger S., Lüdeke-Freund F., Hansen E. (2012), Business cases for sustainability: the role of business model innovation for corporate sustainability, International Journal of Innovation and Sustainability Development, 6(2), pp. 95-119.
  54. Shafer S.M., Smith H.J., Linder J.C. (2005), The power of business models, Business horizons, 48(3), pp. 199-207.
  55. Sheffi Y., Rice J. (2005), A supply chain view of the resilient enterprise, MIT Sloan Management Review, 47, pp. 41-48.
  56. Staw B.M., Sandelands L.E., Dutton J.E. (1981), Threat rigidity effects in organizational behavior: A multilevel analysis, Administrative science quarterly, pp. 501-524.
  57. Sutcliffe K.M., Vogus T.J. (2003), Organizing for resilience. In Cameron K.S., Dutton J.E. and Quinn R.E. (eds), Positive Organizational Scholarship: Foundations of a New Discipline. San Francisco, CA, Berrett-Koehler.
  58. Taleb N.N. (2007), The black swan: The impact of the highly improbable (Vol. 2), Random house.
  59. Teece D.J. (2010), Business models, business strategy and innovation. Long range planning, 43(2-3), pp. 172-194.
  60. Weick K.E., Roberts K.H. (1993), Collective mind in organizations: Heedful interrelating on flight decks, Administrative science quarterly, 38, pp. 357-381.
  61. Weick K.E., Sutcliffe K.M. (2011), Managing the unexpected: Resilient performance in an age of uncertainty (Vol. 8), John Wiley & Sons.
  62. Weick K.E., Sutcliffe K.M., Obstfeld D. (1999), Organizing for high reliability: processes of collective mindfulness, Research in organizational behavior, 21, pp. 81-124.
  63. Wildavsky A.B. (1988), Searching for Safety. Piscataway, NJ,Transaction Publishers.
  64. Williams A., Whiteman G., Kennedy S. (2019), Cross-scale systemic resilience: Implications for organization studies, Business & Society, pp. 1-30.
  65. Williams T.A., Daniel A.G, Kathleen M.S, Dean A.S, Eric Y.Z. (2017), Organizational response to adversity: fusing crisis management and resilience research streams, Academy of Management Annals ,11, pp. 733-769.
  66. Xavier W.G., Bandeira-de-Mello R., Marcon R. (2014), Institutional environment and Business Groups’ resilience in Brazil, Journal of Business Research, 67, pp. 900-907.
  67. Yin R.K. (2018), Case study research and application: Design and methods (Sixth edition). Los Angeles, SAGE Publications.
  68. Zott C., Amit R. (2010), Business model design: an activity system perspective, Long range planning, 43(2-3), pp. 216-226.

  • New Metropolitan Perspectives Cristina Coscia, Angioletta Voghera, pp.1091 (ISBN:978-3-031-06824-9)
  • Integrated Reporting come sistema manageriale per raggiungere obiettivi di sviluppo sostenibile: una verifica empirica Riccardo Santoni, in MANAGEMENT CONTROL 1/2023 pp.43
    DOI: 10.3280/MACO2023-001003
  • Environmental, Social, Governance (ESG) Domenica Lavorato, Palmira Piedepalumbo, Rita Lamboglia, pp.621 (ISBN:978-3-031-76617-6)
  • "Radicare" la sostenibilità nella strategia attraverso i sistemi di management control: un caso di studio relativo ad una Pmi Armando Della Porta, Francesco De Luca, Chiara Aufiero, in MANAGEMENT CONTROL 2/2023 pp.43
    DOI: 10.3280/MACO2023-002003
  • Sustainable Business Model and the Firm Age Variable Impact: Evidence from wine industry Simona Alfiero, Laura Broccardo, Massimo Cane, in MANAGEMENT CONTROL 3/2024 pp.165
    DOI: 10.3280/MACO2023-003008
  • Resilience in action: The bottom up! architecture festival in Turin (Italy) Cristina Coscia, Angioletta Voghera, in Journal of Safety Science and Resilience /2023 pp.174
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jnlssr.2022.10.005

Nicoletta Fadda, Gianfranco Pischedda, Ludovico Marinò, katia Corsi, Sustainable-oriented management come fattore di resilienza organizzativa. Un caso di studio in "MANAGEMENT CONTROL" 2/2021, pp 39-60, DOI: 10.3280/MACO2021-002003