Details of the Task:
Students are asked to engage in case research grounded in the sustainability literature relating to a firm within an industry dealing with either Green Technology or New Business Models for Sustainability. They should critically discuss selected theory in relation to a real world example. For the latter purpose, students are advised to choose a well-known corporation.
The learning purpose of this Portfolio Part is to analyse the business case for sustainability and develop proposals for reconciling tensions between a business' economic, social and environmental contexts. The assignment will also advance the students' ability to communicate effectively in writing and to create spread sheets and analyse data in MS Excel or comparable tools. A selection of theoretical topics covered by the module for your analysis include the following:
• Business Model Innovation
• Business Operations in a Resources Depleting Economy
• Closing-the-loop for Recycling
• Corporate Responsibility (Environmental, Social)
• Sustainability Innovation
• Sustainable Economic Development
• Technology Commercialization Process
• Triple-bottom-line Concept
You are asked to analyse the market position of a company in offering sustainability products or related services. Do not just rewrite a case you find in academic literature or any public report but make sure that you have compiled the sections below yourself. We have zero tolerance for plagiarism. Please include the following appraisals as sections of the report:
1. The green product or service
Describe how the offerings of the chosen company focus on sustainability. Make use of an Annual Report or Sustainability Report issued by the chosen company, and please cite such reports where used. Identify stakeholders connected to producing or consuming the relevant products or services, or to the company's efforts in corporate social responsibility. Please make sure that there is data publicly available or well documented in press or trade publications, when choosing the company for your report.
2. Review of relevant literature
Refer to a few key literature sources in order to explain how the selected company may best pursue sustainability for its offerings. Please refer to the core text book in the first instance. Additionally, where required for your arguments, you may use journal articles retrieved from https://www.scopus.com
3. Industry ranking and reflection
Rank the company relative to its competitors based on sales and based on efforts made to invest in environmentally sound technology or corporate responsibility. Explain why you have used the ranking suggested. Students are asked to present secondary data here. Students are advised to create and use spread sheets in order to condense market data for this section. Purely numerical tables should be placed in an appendix and will not be included in the word count.
4. Conclusions
Finally draw a few key conclusions comparing the data with previous literature appraisal.
References list
(Excluded from word count)
Data appendix
(Excluded from word count)