Born to be sustainable: How to combine strategic disruption, open innovation, and process digitization to create a sustainable business

Abstract

Changing societal demands, climate change, and ecological transition lead companies to modify their practices to integrate social and environmental concerns. However, some businesses are born to be sustainable and thrive in today’s economy. Indeed, their creators are sustainable entrepreneurs who see opportunities in social and environmental issues. This article studies the constituent elements of these companies: disruptive strategy, social product innovation, and digitalization of processes. An in-depth case study of the iconic company Patagonia identifies the main managerial practices that make up sustainable entrepreneurship. The most remarkable ones are: (1) ability to make radical choices contrary to the most common, supposedly more profitable practices; (2) integration of suppliers as true long-term partners; (3) open sustainable product innovation to achieve excellence in simplicity; and (4) environmental activism to convince others to adopt the same practices.