Agile readiness for sustainable operations in start-ups

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to identify the factors influencing agile readiness in start-ups. Start-ups are being confronted with increased competition, customer demands, technological innovations and changes in the market environment. Adopting agile readiness for sustainable operations is a profitable and dependable way to improve the competition and reduce the number of failures of start-ups. The start-ups may investigate “how” after understanding the “whys.” The answers to these questions will be crucial to develop a strategy and a plan for luring clients, users, investors and partners. Therefore, this study will help in answering these crucial questions by using Total Interpretive Structural Modeling (TISM), whose main aim is to answer the key question of “what,” “how” and “why.” Using the “Total Interpretive Structural Modeling (TISM)” technique, this research tries to “describe,” “analyze” and “categorize” the agile readiness for sustainable operations enablers in start-ups.

Design/methodology/approach

Expert feedback and literature reviews from various start-ups led to the discovery of 10 enablers. In this study, the TISM technique was used to examine the inter-relationships between the enablers. The agile readiness for sustainable operations enablers was ranked and classified using the “Multiplication Applied to Classification (MICMAC)” technique. They were divided into four different categories: “autonomous,” “independent,” “linkage” and “dependent enablers.”

Findings

The results show that executive-level aid is the key agile readiness factor for sustainable operations. The next priority has been capability, experienced and skilled employees, market knowledge and environment agility. Leadership and clear vision have been given further priority. The next important is flexibility. The last and the least priority is given to receptive and strategic agility. This directional flow assists management in attaining adaptable sustainability, leading to continued growth in this dynamic environment.

Research limitations/implications

The study focuses primarily on the agile readiness for sustainable operations of start-ups. This study offers a recommended list of crucial elements for start-ups, which may aid in creating guidelines for implementing agility for sustainable operations. This study provides academics with a TISM model that illustrates how start-ups can be ready to implement agility for sustainable operations. Future researchers could add more agility readiness variables to this study and validate this model across different start-ups.

Practical implications

Before implementing agile readiness for sustainable operations in start-ups, this study will aid managers and practitioners in the start-up business in understanding the relationships of enablers and identifying important readiness enablers.

Originality/value

The current study analyzes the agile readiness for sustainable operations in Start-ups. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, it is the first endeavor to use the “TISM approach” to examine the interrelationships across agile readiness for sustainable operations characteristics in start-ups.

Citation

Sreenivasan, A. and Suresh, M. (2024), "Agile readiness for sustainable operations in start-ups", International Journal of Innovation Science, Vol. 16 No. 1, pp. 166-192. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJIS-08-2022-0164