6533b838fe1ef96bd12a52ac

RESEARCH PRODUCT

Customer functional value creation through a sustainable entrepreneurial orientation approach

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This paper advances a theoretical model to empirically test firms’ behaviour regarding sustainable entrepreneurship, enhancing what researchers have recently proposed at a solely conceptual level; this entails sustainable entrepreneurship being understood as a discipline that reliably allows organizations to successfully respond to sustainable development and market requirements. The authors suggest an integrated approach of dynamic-capabilities, S-D logic and product-service system views, which highlights the managerial predisposition to adopt a strategic position that fosters value in use (instead of regular property value), according to the current school of thoughts engaged with innovation and sustainable development. In this regard, this paper investigates structural influences (direct and indirect) of sustainable entrepreneurial orientation and customer functional value creation in firm performance. Hypotheses are tested using the partial least squares method on a multisectoral sample of 210 companies randomly stratified with proportional allocation. The findings indicate that a sustainable entrepreneurial orientation not only has a positive and direct relationship with firm performance, but also that this relationship improves when it is mediated by customer functional value creation. Further research pathways are provided.