How Firms Combine Sustainability-Oriented Partnerships to Improve Environmental, Social, and Governance Performance: A Qualitative Comparative Analysis Study
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Dzhengiz, T., Juntunen, J., Patala, S., & Riandita, A. (2026). How Firms Combine Sustainability-Oriented Partnerships to Improve Environmental, Social, and Governance Performance: A Qualitative Comparative Analysis Study. Business & Society. https://doi.org/10.1177/00076503261468251
© The Author(s) 2026. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/) which permits non-commercial use, reproduction and distribution of the work without further permission provided the original work is attributed as specified on the SAGE and Open Access pages (https://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/open-access-at-sage).
Pysyvä osoite
Kuvaus
A partnership portfolio for sustainability (PPS) is the set of partnerships a firm uses to pursue sustainability goals. Although sustainability-oriented partnerships can improve environmental, social, and governance (ESG) performance, we know less about how a firm’s full partnership portfolio shapes these outcomes. Drawing on modern portfolio theory and alliance portfolio research, we examine how PPS configurations influence ESG performance. Using qualitative comparative analysis of 979 sustainability partnerships across 35 global fashion firms, we identify multiple pathways to high ESG performance. Firms achieve strong ESG outcomes through either large, issue-diverse portfolios or smaller, focused portfolios that combine geographical reach with interventions across multiple levels of change. Neither portfolio size nor partner diversity is universally beneficial; rather, ESG performance depends on configurational fit among portfolio characteristics. These findings challenge assumptions that more partnerships or greater diversity automatically improve ESG outcomes and advance a portfolio perspective of sustainability-oriented partnerships.
Emojulkaisu
ISBN
ISSN
1552-4205
0007-6503
0007-6503
Aihealue
Kausijulkaisu
Business & society
OKM-julkaisutyyppi
A1 Alkuperäisartikkeli tieteellisessä aikakauslehdessä (vertaisarvioitu)