IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/sae/loceco/v38y2023i5p484-505.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Building an empirically grounded conceptual frame for business networking as a mechanism for pro-environmental business growth

Author

Listed:
  • Fred Paterson
  • Bruno Gallotta
  • Polina Baranova

Abstract

Whilst there is a growing body of evidence relating to the environmental capabilities, eco innovation, sustainable supply chains and green skills of individual SMEs (small and medium-sized enterprises), much less attention has been paid to networked approaches to pro-environmental and sustainable SME support. The empirical studies that do exist mostly take a firm-centric approach. This study takes a network centric view to describe hitherto under-explored features of network functionality based on case analysis of a single business support network in the East Midlands of the UK. The resulting conceptual framework offers an analytical tool that can be used to study network functionality in the service of pro-environmental SME development more widely. Empirical data for this case analysis of a regional ‘low carbon’ business network is drawn from interviews with 25 stakeholders, analysis of programme level data and documentation, ‘insider’ observation of network activity and evidence from both independent and internal evaluations. The study charts key aspects of network provision and its impact upon SMEs and wider stakeholders. The paper then presents a conceptual model of pro-environmental business networking that identifies key internal features of network activity as well as various external drivers of multi-stakeholder engagement in the shift to a more sustainable local economy.

Suggested Citation

  • Fred Paterson & Bruno Gallotta & Polina Baranova, 2023. "Building an empirically grounded conceptual frame for business networking as a mechanism for pro-environmental business growth," Local Economy, London South Bank University, vol. 38(5), pages 484-505, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:loceco:v:38:y:2023:i:5:p:484-505
    DOI: 10.1177/02690942241231504
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/02690942241231504
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1177/02690942241231504?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Geels, Frank W., 2012. "A socio-technical analysis of low-carbon transitions: introducing the multi-level perspective into transport studies," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 24(C), pages 471-482.
    2. Olivier Boiral & Charles Baron & Olen Gunnlaugson, 2014. "Environmental Leadership and Consciousness Development: A Case Study Among Canadian SMEs," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 123(3), pages 363-383, September.
    3. Julia Roloff, 2008. "Learning from Multi-Stakeholder Networks: Issue-Focussed Stakeholder Management," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 82(1), pages 233-250, September.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Erik G. Hansen & Stefan Schaltegger, 2018. "Sustainability Balanced Scorecards and their Architectures: Irrelevant or Misunderstood?," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 150(4), pages 937-952, July.
    2. Sagaris, Lake, 2018. "Citizen participation for sustainable transport: Lessons for change from Santiago and Temuco, Chile," Research in Transportation Economics, Elsevier, vol. 69(C), pages 402-410.
    3. Ruhrort, Lisa, 2020. "Reassessing the Role of Shared Mobility Services in a Transport Transition: Can They Contribute the Rise of an Alternative Socio-Technical Regime of Mobility?," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 12(19), pages 1-1.
    4. Kalaivani Jayaraman & Sreenivasan Jayashree & Magiswary Dorasamy, 2023. "The Effects of Green Innovations in Organizations: Influence of Stakeholders," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(2), pages 1-13, January.
    5. Penna, Caetano C.R. & Geels, Frank W., 2015. "Climate change and the slow reorientation of the American car industry (1979–2012): An application and extension of the Dialectic Issue LifeCycle (DILC) model," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 44(5), pages 1029-1048.
    6. Justyna Berniak-Woźny & Małgorzata Rataj, 2023. "Towards Green and Sustainable Healthcare: A Literature Review and Research Agenda for Green Leadership in the Healthcare Sector," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(2), pages 1-18, January.
    7. Julia Rotter & Peppi-Emilia Airike & Cecilia Mark-Herbert, 2014. "Exploring Political Corporate Social Responsibility in Global Supply Chains," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 125(4), pages 581-599, December.
    8. Abdul-Manan, Amir F.N., 2017. "Lifecycle GHG emissions of palm biodiesel: Unintended market effects negate direct benefits of the Malaysian Economic Transformation Plan (ETP)," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 104(C), pages 56-65.
    9. Karoline Augenstein & Alexandra Palzkill, 2015. "The Dilemma of Incumbents in Sustainability Transitions: A Narrative Approach," Administrative Sciences, MDPI, vol. 6(1), pages 1-23, December.
    10. Shafiei, Ehsan & Davidsdottir, Brynhildur & Stefansson, Hlynur & Asgeirsson, Eyjolfur Ingi & Fazeli, Reza & Gestsson, Marías Halldór & Leaver, Jonathan, 2019. "Simulation-based appraisal of tax-induced electro-mobility promotion in Iceland and prospects for energy-economic development," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 133(C).
    11. Child, Michael & Breyer, Christian, 2017. "Transition and transformation: A review of the concept of change in the progress towards future sustainable energy systems," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 107(C), pages 11-26.
    12. Gavin Melles, 2021. "Figuring the Transition from Circular Economy to Circular Society in Australia," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(19), pages 1-20, September.
    13. Canitez, Fatih, 2019. "Pathways to sustainable urban mobility in developing megacities: A socio-technical transition perspective," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 141(C), pages 319-329.
    14. Liu, Hu-Chen & You, Xiao-Yue & Xue, Yi-Xi & Luan, Xue, 2017. "Exploring critical factors influencing the diffusion of electric vehicles in China: A multi-stakeholder perspective," Research in Transportation Economics, Elsevier, vol. 66(C), pages 46-58.
    15. Ersilia Verlinghieri & Elisabetta Vitale Brovarone & Luca Staricco, 2024. "The conflictual governance of street experiments, between austerity and post-politics," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 61(5), pages 878-899, April.
    16. Martin, Hanna & Martin, Roman & Zukauskaite, Elena, 2018. "The Multiple Roles of Demand in Regional Development A Conceptual Analysis," Papers in Innovation Studies 2018/10, Lund University, CIRCLE - Centre for Innovation Research.
    17. Sara Helen Kaweesa & Hamid El Bilali & Willibald Loiskandl, 2021. "Analysing the socio-technical transition to conservation agriculture in Uganda through the lens of the multi-level perspective," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 23(5), pages 7606-7626, May.
    18. Sybille Sachs & Edwin Rühli & Claude Meier, 2010. "Stakeholder Governance as a Response to Wicked Issues," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 96(1), pages 57-64, August.
    19. Meunier, Guy & Ponssard, Jean-Pierre, 2020. "Optimal policy and network effects for the deployment of zero emission vehicles," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 126(C).
    20. Elise Perrault, 2017. "A ‘Names-and-Faces Approach’ to Stakeholder Identification and Salience: A Matter of Status," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 146(1), pages 25-38, November.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:sae:loceco:v:38:y:2023:i:5:p:484-505. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: SAGE Publications (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.lsbu.ac.uk/index.shtml .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.