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Environmental Sustainability (ES) is a growing concern for society’s development while identifying companies’ need to define sustainability-based strategies. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have an essential role; generating more than 60% of employment in Europe and Latin America. Numerous research exists regarding large companies’ situation on environmental topics, yet little exists on SMEs at the practical and theoretical levels. Thus, determining the variables that affect the application of ES is very relevant. This study analyzes in-depth ES factors and drivers from the SMEs’ perspective, exploring the variables influencing their implementation in these companies. The methodology employed is in-depth interviews, applied to a sample of 17 SMEs in Spain and 25 SMEs in Chile. The main findings suggest that Entrepreneurial Orientation (EO), Customer Orientation (CO), and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) influence ES adoption in both countries, showing similarities in the driving reasons behind them, but with certain differences in their implementation (affected by institutional context influences). Furthermore, the level of knowledge affects decision-making related to the development of high-level environmental practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to identify potential explanatory variables of the entrepreneurial orientation and innovation capacity (EO-IC) of family enterprises (FEs) through a comparative study of family businesses in Spain and Latin America. The innovation literature reports a paradigm shift whereby the dynamic boost provided by corporate governance and productivity is playing an increasing role as a driver of EO-IC and sustainable competitive advantage. This issue acquires particular relevance in the case of family firms, where entrepreneurial and innovation capacities are characteristically hampered by socio-emotional and risk-aversion factors. We construct a panel of data on 182 large family enterprises (1,820 observations) domiciled in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, Peru, Uruguay and Spain, drawing on the Thomson Onebanker and ORBIS databases for the period 2008-2018. The results reveal the emergence of new explanatory variables for the structure of the family-firm EO-IC framework, some related to productivity; others more basically to corporate governance. They also show that, in Latin America, the use of business efficiency (productivity) factors in the planning and potentiation of EO-IC by family firms is hampered by the institutional (legal, regulatory, labour and educational) environment, where traditional factors such as firm size and ownership concentration are more relevant. In the Spanish case, however, the evidence points to a transition from traditional inputs towards business efficiency and productivity- related factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The entrepreneurial attitude of companies is key to compete in a globalized and dynamic economic environment. Thus, it is of special interest the analysis of the factors that promote or hinder the entrepreneurial orientation (EO) of organizations. In the case of family businesses, the interaction between the family and the business can directly affect the OE, although this effect may vary depending on whether it occurs in the top management team or in the Board of Directors. In addition, the effect of family involvement in both organs may be affected by their respective sizes. Based on a sample of 91 family SMEs, this paper shows the negative effect on OE of a high proportion of family members in the Board and in the top management team, an effect that is reinforced when the number of decision-makers in each organ is greater. This study also finds that the involvement of different family generations in the top management team has a positive effect on EO, decreasing this influence in larger top management teams In addition to the theoretical implications of these findings, the practical implications for managers and owners of family SMEs that are immersed in a period of professionalization are especially interesting. Thus, this study can be helpful in designing the size and the composition of the top management team and the Board of Directors of this type of organization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Corporate entrepreneurship remains a phenomenon under study due to the positive impact it has generated, first of all, over companies, strengthening their competitive advantages and increasing their value. Secondly, it contributes to the macroeconomic dynamism that occurs in nations in terms of growth, employment, income, innovation and competitiveness. Focusing on Theories of Corporate Entrepreneurship and Resources and Capabilities, the aim of this paper is to relate the entrepreneurial orientation as intention to corporate entrepreneurship as action, considering their differences and complementarities. The database used for empirical confrontation comes from the survey of 137 SME in the Colombian manufacturing sector. Multivariate analysis models and structural equations were estimated, and quantitative evidence of direct and positive relationships with both phenomena indirectly mediated by the capability to assess and manage projects will be presented. This capability has been little explored in previous studies and not proven in relation to the phenomenon analyzed. The results of the factor analysis suggest that this capability can be considered as a theoretical construct, adding theoretical developments with respect to previous studies which have included and analyzed other capabilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates the effect of the entrepreneurial orientation (EO) on SME financial performance. The essay also proposes a contingency model to explore the moderating effects of environmental hostility on the relationship between EO and profitability. The study was conducted using a sample of 121 manufacturing SMEs in Spain. Results confirm the positive influence of EO on a firm's profitability. More importantly, the impact of EO on SME profitability is higher when there is a fit between EO and the external environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]