The Use of Eco-Innovation to Address Labor Conflict: A Study of Small Wins Failure and Success

Abstract

The characteristics of successful small wins approaches are understood; however, we know little about the causes and implications of small wins failure. We examine the causes and implications of failure and success of small wins approaches in six firms in the Australian meat processing industry as they sought to improve environmental management practices and address labor conflict. The approach failed in three cases and succeeded in three, and we use these case studies to develop a theoretical process model showing the inner workings of and explaining differences between failed and successful small wins approaches. Failing firms we studied challenge the assumption that small wins approaches are low risk, as “small flops” led to the ultimate demise of the program in each case, while successful firms we observed showed how, once mastered, a small wins approach can be leveraged to address other seemingly intractable issues.