University of Twente Student Theses
Comparing apples with oranges: a comparison of driving forces for social responsibility and social innovation in-between for-profit SMEs and large enterprises in Germany
Fleischmann, Mario (2021) Comparing apples with oranges: a comparison of driving forces for social responsibility and social innovation in-between for-profit SMEs and large enterprises in Germany.
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| Abstract: | This research compares driving forces for social responsibility and social innovation in-between for-profit small and medium-sized enterprises and large enterprises in Germany. For this explorative research, a qualitative multiple case study approach has been used, including one convenient case group of 7 SMEs, whose case data has been acquired in the form of in-depth interviews, and a second case group of 3 LEs, whose case data has been acquired in the form of enterprise issued sustainability reports. Afterward, the results of both groups have been compared to each other. Findings show, that for both size categories, identified stakeholder groups correspond by their nature, especially the ranking of the stakeholder group of customers coincides within both groups as being considered as of uttermost importance. In terms of social responsibility, formulated enterprise values show signs of similarities. For social responsibility activities, a differentiated degree of likeness has been detected as well. The drivers for the aforementioned social responsibility activities are to an even higher degree equivalent in-between both different sized enterprise groups. For both SMEs and LEs, the drivers for social responsibility activities correspond substantially to the drivers for social innovation. The findings support that a comparison in-between SMEs and LEs is plausible, whereas the drivers are in general of the same nature but vary in their degree of sophistication. The implication of this study recommends that SMEs can extract potential strategies and concepts out of social responsibility activities devised by LEs and try to adapt those to their exigencies in order to make their social responsibility strategy more feasible, plannable, measurable, and in consequence more actionable. |
| Item Type: | Essay (Bachelor) |
| Faculty: | BMS: Behavioural, Management and Social Sciences |
| Subject: | 85 business administration, organizational science |
| Programme: | International Business Administration BSc (50952) |
| Link to this item: | https://purl.utwente.nl/essays/86763 |
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