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SYLLABUS
SUMMER TERM 2019 SUSTAINABLE MANAGEMENT AND
SUSTAINABLE COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGES
8 April 2019 10 am introductory lecture in room H 0107
Lecture hours on Mondays 10 am to 2 pm
Chair of Strategic Leadership and Global Management
Lecturer Professor Dr. Dodo zu Knyphausen-Aufseß
Research associate Dipl.-Ing. Niko Ippendorf
Contact [email protected]
Website www.strategie.tu-berlin.de
Quick access 184857
SUSTAINABLE MANAGEMENT AND SUSTAINABLE COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGES
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MODULE OBJECTIVES
The module focuses on the overlapping of strategic management and sustainable manage-
ment. Therefore, it combines academic and theoretical issues as well as practice-related and
interactive presentations, and workshops. Part of this module entails the participation of ex-
perts from different companies, consultancies, and institutions sharing their practical experi-
ence, e. g., in form of workshops executed by representatives of the Boston Consulting Group,
KPMG, McKinsey & Co., Siemens, and Strategy&.
From a strategic management perspective, the term “sustainability” is well established in the
context of achieving a viable competitive advantage, a firm possessing a unique combination
of resources which enables it to maintain above-average profitability. However, this narrow
understanding of the term “sustainability” is not adequate for integrating the basic tenets of
sustainability management, e. g., developing and exercising responsibility in economic, social,
and environmental dimensions.
Therefore, this module is dedicated to exploring the topic of strategies for sustainability from
different perspectives and to re-think the axioms of strategic management from a sustainable
management point of view. After an introductory part on key terms used in strategic and sus-
tainability management, a coherent concept of a “sustainability perspective of strategic man-
agement” is developed. Several sessions deal with the environment and the idea of a circular
economy, exemplified by looking at specific industries such as the food industry.
Finally, the module aims at understanding the concept of a "sustainability strategy". It focuses
on the corporate strategy, the business models, and their influencing factors which determine
the strategic choices and performance implications in the economic, social, and environmen-
tal dimensions.
The module is offered to familiarise you with the overlapping demands on competitive and
sustainable advantages. Therefore, we pursue the aim of enabling you to be put in the situa-
tion of a “sustainability manager”. In a scientific manner, you should identify, grasp, and ana-
lyse relevant sustainability problems and develop a theoretically sound suggestion for a prac-
tical solution.
Module structure and content 3
Enrolment and exam registration 5
Portfolio exam and grading 6
Project work 7
Lectures 10
Workshops 13
Excursion 15
Hints for academic writing 16
SUSTAINABLE MANAGEMENT AND SUSTAINABLE COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGES
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MODULE STRUCTURE AND CONTENT
Our module combines lectures and interactive techniques such as workshops and student
presentations to avoid teacher-centred teaching.
After the introductory lecture on 8 April 2019, enrolment to the module is possible on ISIS.
This internal registration is a mandatory requirement for group formation, further participa-
tion, and the reception of information via e-mail during the term. Exam registration and final
group formation should be settled by 10 Mai 2019.
The module includes project work, lectures, workshops, and an excursion:
PROJECT WORK
Academic poster,
written assignment,
and
academic writing classes
EXCURSION
Company visit of
ALBA Facility Solutions—
underground waste disposal
WORKSHOPS
Practical insight and case studies
by guest lecturers of
Boston Consulting Group, KPMG,
McKinsey, Siemens,
and Strategy&
LECTURES
Theoretical insight to
Strategic and Sustainability
Management
6 SESSIONS
6 SESSIONS
5 SESSIONS
1 SESSION
SUSTAINABLE MANAGEMENT AND SUSTAINABLE COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGES
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SCHEDULE SUMMER TERM 2019
Week CW
Date Monday
Block A: 10 am to 12 noon
Room
Block B: 12 noon to 2 pm
Room
1 (15) 8 April 1 Introductory lecture H 0107 2 Idea finding: “Pedelec impact” H 0107
2 (16) 15 April 3 Determinants of sustainability strategy HBS 005 4 Kick-off: group formation and 1st delivery HBS 005
3 (17) 22 April Easter
4 (18) 29 April 5 Restructuring in the food industry H 0107 6 Bayer and Monsanto H 0107
5 (19) 6 May 7 BCG: Food industry H 3005 8 BCG: Food industry H 3005
6 (20) 13 May 9 Business model and entrepreneurship H 2036 10 2nd delivery: group presentation (1-6) H 2036
7 (21) 20 May 11 Strategy&: Sustainability strategy H 3005 12 2nd delivery: group presentation (7-12) H 3005
8 (22) 27 May 13 Growth and de-growth HBS 005 14 Academic writing and poster design HBS 005
9 (23) 3 June 15 KPMG: Sustainability report H 3005 16 KPMG: Sustainability report H 3005
10 (24) 10 June Pentecost
11 (25) 17 June 17 Siemens: Implementing Sustainability H 3005 18 Siemens: Implementing Sustainability H 3005
12 (26) 24 June 19 Alba tour (Potsdamer Platz) 20 Alba tour (Potsdamer Platz)
13 (27) 1 July 21 McKinsey: Circular economy H 2036 22 McKinsey: Circular economy H 2036
14 (28) 8 July 23 Final delivery: poster session (1-10) H 2036 24 Final delivery: poster session (1-10) H 2036
Module participants a maximum of 50 students Formats Lecture Project work Workshop Excursion ö
Project groups a maximum of 10 groups (4 to 6 members) different classroom Written assignment each group (20 to a maximum of 30 A4 pages) Bold milestones of project work
SUSTAINABLE MANAGEMENT AND SUSTAINABLE COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGES
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ENROLMENT AND EXAM REGISTRATION
The module is intended primarily for students of the master degree “Innovation Management,
Entrepreneurship and Sustainability” (IMES) and builds on our bachelor degrees “Nachhaltiges
Management”.
The number of module participants is limited to 50
Besides, students from other disciplines or universities are also invited to enrol in our module.
Access is only limited by the number of registered IMES students and there is no further pre-
requisite.
To take the module, you have to register twice:
Internal enrolment on ISIS Exam registration on QISPOS
Registration ISIS course “SusMa 2019 enrolment” QISPOS or examination office
Deadline Tuesday, 9 April 2019 Friday, 10 May 2019
Website www.isis.tu-berlin.de TUB login or quick access 9368
The ISIS password will be given during the introductory lecture.
Due to the limitation of participants, the internal enrolment on ISIS applicates you to an initial
selection process.
Priority Students Selection criteria
1 IMES students (TU master degree) higher semester prioritised
2 other students randomised
After the selection process, you will receive a confirmation e-mail. Additionally, module con-
tent, readings, and further information will be released on ISIS.
For exam registration, Erasmus or visiting students who need a certificate of attendance
(“Schein”) register at our assistant office, room H 9167.
Ensure that you are informed about the
specific registration procedures of your master degree!
Withdrawal from the module is possible until Friday, 10 May 2019. After this date, your appli-
cation is considered binding and a withdrawal from the module will be graded “not sufficient”
(5.0).
SUSTAINABLE MANAGEMENT AND SUSTAINABLE COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGES
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PORTFOLIO EXAM AND GRADING
You will be graded based on a portfolio exam consisting of the following two parts:
Parts of exam Points Extent
Design and presentation of an academic poster 60 points A0 page
Written assignment 40 points 20 to 30 A4 pages
You can score a maximum of 100 points.
To pass the module, you must achieve at least 50 points in total regardless of what you have
reached in each partial exam.
Grading scale
1.0 1.3 1.7 2.0 2.3 2.7 3.0 3.3 3.7 4.0 5.0
90.0 85.0 80.0 76.0 72.0 67.0 63.0 59.0 54.0 50.0 0.0
1.0, 1.3: excellent 1.7, 2.0, 2.3: good 2.7, 3.0, 3.3: satisfactory 3.7, 4.0: sufficient 5.0: not sufficient
SUSTAINABLE MANAGEMENT AND SUSTAINABLE COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGES
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PROJECT WORK
The project work is organised as a group effort. Grading is the same for all group members but
modified by a peer group assessment.
Group Number
Project groups 10
Group members 4 to 6
During the semester, there is a total of six sessions dealing with the processing of your project
work. These sessions are structured as follows:
Date Issue
8 April Class: academic writing and research idea (best practice example)
15 April Kick-off: Group formation and 1st delivery
13 May 2nd delivery: Intermediate group presentations (groups 1 to 5)
20 May 2nd delivery: Intermediate group presentations (groups 6 to 10)
3 June Class: design and structure of an academic poster
8 July Final delivery: presentation of academic posters (groups 1 to 10)
Deadline for submitting the
written assignment on ISIS is Friday, 20 September 2019!
KICK-OFF AND 1ST DELIVERY
During the kick-off and group formation event, you get the opportunity to present your indi-
vidual research ideas to your fellow students and to get together in 10 groups. This session is
supplemented by a lecture element about the determinants of sustainability strategies.
Furthermore, each group prepares a short exposé about its research topic and approach. The
amount of the exposé is 1/2 A4 page and has to be uploaded on ISIS by Wednesday, 17 April
2019.
SUSTAINABLE MANAGEMENT AND SUSTAINABLE COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGES
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2ND DELIVERY
In the sessions on 13 May and 20 May 2019, you present the progress of your project work.
These sessions are supplemented by a lecture element about business models and entrepre-
neurship and a workshop about sustainability strategy, respectively. We individually discuss
whether your research goal is clearly defined, your work is well structured and what you still
need to work on.
Hints for the 2nd delivery
Duration: -
about 5 to 10 minutes presentation followed by 5 to 10 minutes of discus-sion and feedback. Moderation by presenting group.
Scope: Presentation type, design, and structure freely selectable, e. g., flip chart, PowerPoint (PowerPoint presentations with a maximum of 5 slides).
Remarks: If you use presentation aids, it is your responsibility to test your presenta-tion in advance and to ensure the functionality of the equipment in the presentation room.
FINAL DELIVERY POSTER SESSION AND WRITTEN ASSIGNMENT
In our last session, as the first part of the portfolio exam, you will present your project work
results. Therefore, we exhibit your academic posters in our own “gallery”. You have the chance
to study the other groups’ approaches and results, to talk to the authors, and to discuss dif-
ferent topics.
As the second part of the portfolio exam, each group has to upload a written assignment on
ISIS. In the last chapter of the syllabus, further hints for academic writing are available.
Hints for the final delivery
Format: Poster A0 page
Duration: About 10 minutes poster presentation followed by 5 minutes of discussion and feedback. Moderation by presenting group.
Remarks: The academic posters have to include the group number, members’ names and first names, and student IDs.
You are responsible for designing, printing, and saving the poster until the presentation day. Additional presentation aids are not needed.
SUSTAINABLE MANAGEMENT AND SUSTAINABLE COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGES
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Hints for the written assignments
Scope: 20 to a maximum of 30 A4 pages.
Submission: 20 September 2019, upload on ISIS (PDF file)
Guideline: Guidelines for margins, font size and formatting are available on our web-site
Remarks: The written assignments have to include the group number, members’ names and first names, and student IDs.
SUSTAINABLE MANAGEMENT AND SUSTAINABLE COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGES
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LECTURES
8 APRIL 2019: INTRODUCTORY LECTURE
The module structure is based on the finding that strategic management is always interested
in the relationship of systems—in our case: the business firm—and their environment. The
latter does not merely relate to the natural environment but includes additionally, e. g., the
industry in which the firm is embedded in, the economy, and the society as a whole. Exploring
sustainability strategies for business firms also requires reflecting our socio-economic system
in general. Therefore, we familiarise you with the key terms used in strategic and sustainable
management. Building on this basis, we develop a more coherent concept of a sustainability
perspective of strategic management. If you who have visited one of our bachelor modules
“Nachhaltiges Management” or “Grundlagen des strategischen und internationalen Manage-
ments”, it might be helpful to re-read the module syllabi and to recapitulate what you have
already learned.
Recommended Readings
Shrivastava, P., Ecocentric management for a risk society (1995). Academy of Manage-ment Review 20: 118-137.
Porter, M. E., & Kramer, M. R. (2011). Creating shared value. Harvard Business Review, 89(1/2): 62-77.
15 APRIL 2019: DETERMINANTS OF A SUSTAINABILITY STRATEGY
Having learned about the content of sustainability strategies, the next step is to analyse how
the choice of a sustainability strategy is determined—why are some firms engaging in this area
and others not? Research has identified a number of impact factors, such as governmental
regulation, the values of managers, the bargaining power of supply chain partners, and eco-
nomic considerations (the business case for corporate social responsibility). We provide a brief
overview of some of the empirical results regarding the impact factors before we analyse the
determining role of ownership more detailed. Additionally, we question whether family firms
behave differently in terms of sustainability than other firms. The intuition is that families are
more dependent on their local social context and have a stronger preference for long-term
goals compared to companies with different ownership structures.
Readings
Faller, C., & zu Knyphausen-Aufseß, D., Does equity ownership matter for corporate so-cial responsibility? A literature review of theories and recent empirical findings. Journal of Business Ethics, 150: 15-40.
Berrone, P., Cruz, C. C., Gomez-Mejia, L. R., & Larraza Kintana, M. (2010). Socioemotional wealth and corporate response to institutional pressures: Do family-controlled firms pollute less? Administrative Science Quarterly, 55(1): 82–113.
SUSTAINABLE MANAGEMENT AND SUSTAINABLE COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGES
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29 APRIL 2019: RESTRUCTURING IN THE FOOD INDUSTRY—BAYER AND MONSANTO
Having discussed an overall vision for a sustainable strategy and its determinants, we pay at-
tention to the industry level. Therefore, we focus on a unit of analysis that Michael Porter—
in his well-known work—mentions as the centre of the strategic management discipline. The
specific example we will focus on is the food industry due to the fact that this industry is not
only close to our personal life but it is also often seen as one core industry for the problem of
hunger that, in turn, is a core issue in the global sustainability context.
By food industry we understand the whole spectrum of food production and delivery, begin-
ning with agriculture, covering producers of seed goods and pesticides as well as food produc-
ers such as Nestlé and Unilever, and ending at food retailers and super markets. Oxfam, an
international confederation of charitable organisations focused on the alleviation of global
poverty, has recently published a study that heavily criticises the increasing trend towards
concentration on all levels of the food industry system, leading not only to problems such as
food waste in parallel with undersupply but also to numerous environmental and social issues.
Based on a presentation of the basic tenets of this Oxfam study (which is unfortunately only
available in German), we will focus our attention on the agriculture (sub-) industry and discuss
a future outlook for this industry.
Readings
Oxfam Konzernatlas. Daten und Fakten über die Agrar- und Lebensmittelindustrie (2017). https://www.oxfam.de/system/files/konzernatlas 2017_web_170207.pdf.
BCG. How both nutrition and indulgence propelling growth in CPG, March 2017
BCG. When social responsibility leads to growth. June 2014
WRI. Business case for reducing food loss and waste. Craig Hanson, March 2017
WRI. Creating a sustainable Food Future. Executive Summary only, 2014: 1-3
13 MAY 2019: BUSINESS MODELS AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP
This session is based on two assumptions. First, “Strategies for Sustainability” should also in-
clude the notion of a business model, or to be more precise: the notion of a sustainable busi-
ness model. And second, sustainability is not only a relevant topic for established companies,
it is also at the core of the business concept of many start-up companies.
According to the so-called population ecology school of strategic management, established
companies are inert—unable to adapt rapidly enough to changing environments. Conse-
quently, new firms are needed that include sustainability as a blueprint in their DNA. In this
session, we will outline this idea and discuss how one of the most well-known tools for devel-
oping business models—Pigneur and Osterwalder’s “business model canvas”—can be used to
develop and evaluate the sustainability dimension of business models.
SUSTAINABLE MANAGEMENT AND SUSTAINABLE COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGES
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Readings
Bocken, N. M. P.; Short, S. W.; Rhana, P. and Evans, S. (2013). A literature and practice re-view to develop sustainable business model archetypes. Journal of Cleaner Produc-tion, 65: 42-56.
Schaltegger, S., Hansen, E. G., & Lüdeke-Freund (2016). Business models for sustainabil-ity: origins, present research, and future avenues. Organization & Environment, 29(1): 3-10.
3 JUNE 2019: GROWTH AND DE-GROWTH
Growth is one of the mantras of our economy. We tend to believe that growth is something
positive and that the economy is prospering if the gross domestic product (GDP) is rising. A
shrinking economy is seen as an economy in crisis.
A similar kind of thinking applies to the company level—the growth of a firm as an indicator
for success. However, scientists propagating a de-growth economy, building on the under-
standing that resources—particularly in the natural environment—are limited and, therefore,
restrict the idea of continuous growth. Hence, they argue that there is a need for a sustainable
qualitative growth—a growth that does not correlate with increasing resource consumption.
What implications does this discussion have for our understanding of strategic management?
Where does the growth imperative come from? Do we have a compelling concept of qualita-
tive growth? How should companies prepare for a low-growth economy? This session will ad-
dress these and related questions and their implications for our future research agenda.
Readings
Capra, H., Henderson, H. (2009). Qualitative growth. A conceptual framework for finding solutions to our current crisis that are economically sound, ecologically sustainable, and socially just. In: From Capitalistic to Humanistic Business (2014)
www.icaew.com/sustainablebusiness
SUSTAINABLE MANAGEMENT AND SUSTAINABLE COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGES
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WORKSHOPS
6 MAY 2019: BOSTON CONSULTING GROUP FOOD INDUSTRY
The food industry system has come under fire (see lecture on 29 April 2019). How does the
industry react? Although we cannot answer this question in a comprehensive way, we will
focus on an initiative that was announced at the World Economic Forum in Davos in January
2017. 24 leading global companies such as Nestlé, Kellog, Pepsico, Google, Du Pont, and Solvay
announced a collaborative commitment to accelerate transformational change in global food
systems. The companies have joined together to launch FReSH—the Food Reform for Sustain-
ability and Health program—under the leadership of the World Business Council for Sustain-
able Development (WBCSD) and the EAT Foundation (EAT). FReSH is designed to accelerate
transformational change in global food systems, and to reach healthy diets available for eve-
ryone and produced responsibly within planetary boundaries. To achieve this goal, FReSH
made business and science working together. It draws on knowledge and efforts from premier
research institutions and is working with the business community to develop high-impact so-
lutions. Member of this initiative is the Boston Consulting Group. We will discuss about the
goals and promises of this initiative with Alexander Meyer zum Felde, principal and sustaina-
bility expert at BCG and co-lead of the FReSH initiative. Our workshop aims to extract your
ideas on how to foster the transformation of this level of the food industry.
Readings
Oxfam Konzernatlas. Daten und Fakten über die Agrar- und Lebensmittelindustrie (2017). https://www.oxfam.de/system/files/konzernatlas2017_web_170207.pdf.
BCG. How both nutrition and indulgence propelling growth in CPG. March 2017
BCG. When social responsibility leads to growth. June 2014
WRI. Business case for reducing food loss and waste. Craig Hanson, March 2017
WRI. Creating a sustainable Food Future. Executive Summary only, 2014: 1-3
20 MAY 2019: STRATEGY& SUSTAINABILITY STRATEGY
Addressing the session on 13 May 2019, we want to learn how the development of a sustain-
ability strategy can be supported by a strategy consulting company—how consultants ap-
proach such an effort and what experiences they make when dealing with clients who want
to set the sustainability issue on their strategic agenda. Our guest is Dr. Nils Naujok, vice pres-
ident of Strategy& (formerly Booz and Company, now part of the PwC network). He will pre-
sent a project Strategy& is engaged in with a global player in the chemical industry. In the
beginning, company settings will be looked at and crucial questions will be elaborated. What
is the value of a position in the area of sustainability, what are the possibilities of differentia-
tion in the market? Later, the strategy development approach from vision, topics and targets
to initiatives and management systems will be presented and selected project results will be
shown. The presentation is supplemented by diverse interactive elements
SUSTAINABLE MANAGEMENT AND SUSTAINABLE COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGES
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27 MAY 2019: KPMG SUSTAINABILITY REPORT
Since corporate activities have an impact on future economy and society, it is necessary to
ensure a long-term sustainable development of a company. Therefore, companies need a
framework to collect, analyse and communicate the corporate sustainability information and
manage sustainability in a corporate environment.
In the previous sessions, we have learned about the content of sustainability strategies and
how to determine the choice of them, as well as the development and evaluation of sustain-
ability-oriented business models. In this session, we want to deal with the performance indi-
cators of sustainability strategies and we want to present which measurement approaches
exist. The core idea is that Strategic Management as a discipline always has, as you may re-
member from our introductory session, a dedicated performance orientation. If we take this
cornerstone seriously, it is indeed a relevant question how we can measure performance or,
in other words, how we can extend the traditional measures of financial performance so that
the social or ecological implications of a specific strategy can be considered as well.
We have the pleasure to have representatives of KPMG with us, one of the worldwide leading
accountancy firms. In the first part of the workshop, KPMG will give you an overview of sus-
tainability accounting and reporting by sharing insights from their sustainability assurance
work and recent studies. In the second part of the workshop, you will gain hands-on experi-
ence on developing sustainability reports based on the knowledge you acquired from the pre-
vious part.
17 JUNE 2019: MCKINSEY CIRCULAR ECONOMY
How could an economy look like that saves resources and is considered sustainable? One vi-
sionary idea to answer this question is the concept of a “Circular Economy”, which aims at
decoupling growth from the use of scarce resources, i.e. resources that are constrained by
physical availability or negative externalities of use. This workshop session is devoted to pre-
sent this concept. Our guests Ms. Marianne Kuhlmann and Mr. Christof Witte are representa-
tives of McKinsey & Co. —a consulting company that has intensively worked on this concept
with its clients and has also conducted a number of studies on behalf of the Ellen MacArthur
Foundation, a UK-based institution which promotes the idea of a circular economy on diverse
channels.
Readings
Ellen MacArthur Foundation (2013): Towards a circular economy. Economic and business rationale for an accelerated transition advantage.
Murray, A., Skene, K., Haynes, K. The circular economy. An interdisciplinary exploration of the concept and application in a global context. Journal of Business Ethics, 140: 369-380.
SUSTAINABLE MANAGEMENT AND SUSTAINABLE COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGES
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1 JULY 2019: SIEMENS IMPLEMENTING SUSTAINABILITY STRATEGIES
It is a long-lasting debate in strategic management that strategy formulation does not suffice;
the real concern and often more challenging task is strategy implementation! Thus, we will
outline and discuss different levers for handling this challenge by combining insights from re-
search and practice in our session.
Research offers the rather abstract notion that successful companies are characterized by an
implementation capability. Starting our session, we will introduce two levers being often men-
tioned in connection with such an implementation capability: The first one is organization,
e.g., establishing a chief sustainability officer position. The other one focuses on management
systems to encourage managers and employees to do what the company wants them to do
by regularly tracking progress towards defined targets. With the help of a Harvard Business
School case study on Sustainability at Siemens, we will elaborate on these and additional lev-
ers for implementing sustainability strategies.
Moreover, we will have the opportunity to discuss these levers with Siemens representatives
who will also shed light on the recent developments for implementing sustainability at Sie-
mens. In fact, Siemens was rated “the world’s most sustainable corporation 2018” in the well-
known rating by Corporate Knights and Forbes.
To conclude this session, recent research on approaches spanning hard and soft levers for
implementing sustainability in companies will be presented by Stefanie Priemer. She is the
head of strategy in the Siemens Energy division and has just submitted her dissertation on
sustainability management systems at our faculty.
Readings
Miller, K., & Serafeim, G. (2014). Chief sustainability officers: Who are they and what do they do? Working Paper 05-011, Harvard Business School.
Epstein, M. J., & Buhovac, A. R. (2010). Solving the sustainability implementation chal-lenge, Organizational Dynamics, 39(4): 306–315.
EXCURSION
Academically talking about a “circular economy” is one thing. Understanding what “recycling”
or “waste disposal” mean is another. We have the opportunity for an on-site visit of the ALBA
Facility Solutions at Potsdamer Platz in Berlin. ALBA developed IT-supported solution to or-
ganise the complete supply and waste disposal of the urban district Berlin-Mitte—operating
underground. More information will be provided later.
The excursion in planned for Monday, 24 June 2019.
SUSTAINABLE MANAGEMENT AND SUSTAINABLE COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGES
16
HINTS FOR THE ACADEMIC WRITING
Below we provide a few brief hints that help you to develop your written assignment. Essen-
tially, essays in scientific journals have an identical structure:
Introduction: Your motivation for the chosen topic: Why is the topic important? Why is read-
ing the paper worthwhile?
Theoretical framework: Which literature is already available? From which perspective do you
want to work on the topic? Which aspect has not been addressed in the literature yet (re-
search gap)?
Research question and aim of the investigation: What is the concrete delimitation of your
topic? Which questions do you want to answer? Which research objective is your work exactly
pursuing?
Research Design: Which methodology is suitable for answering your research question? Is the
work theoretical or empirical? How were cases selected and analysed in other case studies?
Results: What did you find out?
Discussion: Compare your results with the initial theoretical framework. Did you answer your
research question? Has the theory proven itself? Does it have to be developed further?
Conclusions and future research: What lesson does the reader learn? Where do you see the
limits of your work? What could be explored meaningfully in the future (future research)?
Theoretical and practical implications: What theoretical implications for scientists can be de-
rived from your work? What are practical implications for practitioners and—in this case—for
a company in the long-run?
Basically, you should stick to this structure.
For further information about the essentials and structure of academic writing see the guide
“Essentials of academic writing” by Huizingh Academic Development.
For any problems or questions in the run-up to the poster creation and/or writing the written
assignments, please contact us.