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Article
Publication date: 9 January 2020

Claus-Heinrich Daub, Marina Hasler, Arie Hans Verkuil and Uta Milow

This paper aims to describe an innovative approach of integrating sustainability into the structures and processes of a business school without creating resistance.

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Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to describe an innovative approach of integrating sustainability into the structures and processes of a business school without creating resistance.

Design/methodology/approach

A sustainable entrepreneurship competition was embedded as an independent programme in an already existing business plan competition at the School of Business FHNW. The paper shows, which structural elements of the competition had to be adapted to the needs of sustainable entrepreneurs.

Findings

The paper outlines aspects that need to be considered and steps that need to be taken to run a sustainable entrepreneurship competition supporting as many high-quality projects as possible. It describes the importance of developing an independent instrument that meets the specific needs of sustainable entrepreneurs in project planning. The sustainable innovation plan is explained.

Social implications

The student projects are developed at the School of Business FHNW as part of the entrepreneurship competition, which has been successfully carried out twice. They have numerous measurable positive social and ecological effects, which are described by the students in their sustainable innovation plans and are subsequently reflected in the realization of the projects.

Originality/value

Using the example of the Swiss Student Sustainability Challenge, the paper demonstrates under which conditions a sustainability project can be successfully integrated into the existing structures of an institution of higher education and develop into a beacon project of the university. Other universities can make use of these findings to launch comparable projects at their institutions.

Details

International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education, vol. 21 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1467-6370

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 September 2005

Claus‐Heinrich Daub and Rudolf Ergenzinger

Aims to illustrate the extent to which the concept of sustainable management can be grounded in a new appreciation of customer satisfaction, to set out the concept of sustainable…

6344

Abstract

Purpose

Aims to illustrate the extent to which the concept of sustainable management can be grounded in a new appreciation of customer satisfaction, to set out the concept of sustainable management based on business ethical considerations on corporate social responsibility, and to distinguish it from similar concepts. Its rationale lies in the figure of the generalised customer.

Design/methodology/approach

The generalised customer stems from a combination of stakeholder theory and sociological role theory. The stakeholder theory discusses the different stakeholder roles from an organisational perspective, whereas the sociological role theory views essentially the same roles and relationships from the individual's perspective. Focus lies in the personal preferences and attitudes accompanying the different roles one person plays in society – as a consumer, father, or member of Amnesty International.

Findings

A first attempt to put these roles and relationships in a sustainability context – providing an impression of all possible needs, wants, and expectations a company can expect from its customers. This notion alters marketing's view of the customer and brings about a new understanding of customer satisfaction.

Practical implications

Customer satisfaction must be seen in a more holistic, multidimensional perspective in future. Companies succeeding in taking this step towards sustainable management will raise their profile among customers, differentiate themselves from the competition, and achieve legitimacy vis‐à‐vis society.

Originality/value

The combination of two, often opposing, theoretical genres related to consumer behaviour and the examination of the phenomenon “the customer” from both perspectives, offering a new species of customers in addition to homo economicus.

Details

European Journal of Marketing, vol. 39 no. 9/10
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0309-0566

Keywords

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