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Sustainable development and profit? A sensemaking perspective on hybrid organisations and their founders

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  • Noelia‐Sarah Reynolds
  • Diane Holt

Abstract

This article explores the sensemaking process of the individual entrepreneurs behind hybrid organisations that seek to both initiate environmental/social change and also generate profit. The work sheds light on how founders of six such organisations set‐up initially in between 1978 and 1991 make sense of themselves and their firm and how this impacts on their business strategies. We examine the life‐stories of these individuals to illuminate their perspectives on their experiences, motives and values. We suggest that both ambition and altruism motivate individuals to become involved in these firms, echoing the paradox of firms seeking both social change and value creation. The work enhances our understanding of both sensemaking theory and success factors for hybrid organisations and strategizing more broadly.

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  • Noelia‐Sarah Reynolds & Diane Holt, 2021. "Sustainable development and profit? A sensemaking perspective on hybrid organisations and their founders," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(4), pages 2147-2159, May.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:bstrat:v:30:y:2021:i:4:p:2147-2159
    DOI: 10.1002/bse.2737
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Simone Carmine & Valentina De Marchi, 2023. "Reviewing Paradox Theory in Corporate Sustainability Toward a Systems Perspective," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 184(1), pages 139-158, April.
    2. Roland Somlai, 2022. "Integrating decision support tools into businesses for sustainable development: A paradoxical approach to address the food waste challenge," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 31(4), pages 1607-1622, May.
    3. Veland Ramadani & Sucheta Agarwal & Andrea Caputo & Vivek Agrawal & Jitendra Kumar Dixit, 2022. "Sustainable competencies of social entrepreneurship for sustainable development: Exploratory analysis from a developing economy," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 31(7), pages 3437-3453, November.
    4. Azhdar Karami & Robert Anthony Gorzynski, 2022. "Connection to nature and sustainability in small‐ and medium‐sized environmental organizations: A dynamic strategic thinking approach," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 31(1), pages 371-389, January.
    5. Kevin Reuther & Yngve Dahle & Carolin Schmidt & Franziska Schösser, 2023. "Motivational Facets of Sustainable Entrepreneurship: A Systematic Review and Future Research Agenda," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(3), pages 1-23, January.
    6. Marina Gigliotti & Andrea Runfola, 2022. "A stakeholder perspective on managing tensions in hybrid organizations: Analyzing fair trade for a sustainable development," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 31(7), pages 3198-3215, November.
    7. Tancredi Pascucci & Giuseppina Maria Cardella & Brizeida Hernàndez-Sànchez & Jose Carlos Sànchez-Garcìa, 2022. "Environmental Sensitivity to Form a Sustainable Entrepreneurial Intention," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(16), pages 1-17, August.
    8. Tiberius, Victor & Stiller, Laura & Dabić, Marina, 2021. "Sustainability beyond economic prosperity: Social microfoundations of dynamic capabilities in family businesses," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 173(C).
    9. Padmaja Argade & Fanny Salignac & Ralf Barkemeyer, 2021. "Opportunity identification for sustainable entrepreneurship: Exploring the interplay of individual and context level factors in India," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(8), pages 3528-3551, December.

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