Proactive sustainability strategies and capability development: Insights from the public transportation industry

Proactive sustainability strategies and capability development: Insights from the public transportation industry Catalin Ratiu, Ph.D. Concordia University, 2011 In this thesis I examine the link between proactive sustainability strategies and organizational capabilities and contribute to the resource-based view of the firm and the growing research on organizations and the natural environment. While the relationship between proactive sustainable strategies and organizational capabilities is established in the strategic management literature, a deeper understanding of how capabilities are developed in this context remains a challenge. My aim is to investigate this relationship and understand the processes involved in developing valuable, organization-specific capabilities. The study addresses the following research questions: What explains the link between proactive sustainability strategy and capability development? How do organizations develop generic capabilities once they formulate a proactive sustainability strategic intent? What are the mechanisms and processes of capability development? Using multiple case studies of public transit authorities in North America, I investigate the role of sustainability initiatives in capability development, through mechanisms of selection and implementation. Findings point to the need for organizations to adopt strategic structures and processes as part of a deliberate intent to develop capabilities and build advantages in a complex and competitive environment. The thesis contributes to the resource-based view and the dynamic capabilities perspective by explaining how organizations that implement proactive sustainability strategies develop valuable capabilities. Second, the thesis extends the applicability of the resource-based view to the public sector, where competition emerges as a sophisticated and critical force, which further underscores the importance of capabilities to gaining competitive advantage. Finally, the thesis validates public transit as a research setting relevant to sustainability scholars, by explaining the tension between a green industry and its own substantial impact on the environment. Acknowledgments This thesis is the result of over four years of work, which involved the careful and generous support of many individuals and organizations. With deep gratitude I recognize Dr Rick Molz for his friendship and superb guidance, relentlessly and consistently applied during the last seven years. This process would have been impossibly lonely without our regular meetings, research collaborations, and academic activities. Rick’s dedication to and support of my work offers a wealth of reference points for how to conduct an academic career. I also wish to acknowledge committee members: Dr Taïeb Hafsi, Dr Sanjay Sharma and Dr Judith Walls. Dr Sanjay Sharma joined the committee at a critical junction, as I was venturing into a field where I had more questions than answers. Our conversations and research collaboration went a long way in shaping the ideas of this thesis. I am greatly indebted to Dr Judith Walls, whom I met in the later stages of the PhD program, but who has more than made up for a relatively short committee service with an abundance of ideas, feedback, and invaluable resources to last a lifetime. For continuous support and feedback I also wish to thank Dr Taïeb Hafsi, who has spent countless hours reading various iterations of my work over the last years. This research would not have been possible without the collaboration of participant organizations. I therefore wish to thank the managers at TriMet (Portland), BART (San Francisco), CCTA (Burlington), Via Rail, and STM (Montreal), for candidly opening up about successes and challenges. The research activities and writing of this thesis were supported through grants from: the PhD in Administration Program at the John Molson School of Business, the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, Hydro Quebec graduate scholarship, the David O’Brien Centre for Sustainable Enterprise, and the JMSB Commerce and Administration Students' Association. Early drafts of chapters from this thesis were presented and reviewed in various settings between 2008 and 2011. For helpful comments and feedback I wish to thank: Andy Hoffman, Tom Lyon, Brent McKnight, Sara Soderstrom, Jim Walsh, the department of Management at the John Molson School of Business, members of the Montreal Local Global Research Group, and anonymous reviewers at the Academy of Management and Administrative Sciences Association of Canada. Very special recognition goes to my colleagues and friends who went beyond any expectations in engaging with my ideas, false starts, and small achievements along the way. This thesis reflects the dedication and friendship for which I am deeply grateful to: Dr Elena Lvina and Carol-Ann Tetrault-Sirsly (both also helped validate the instrument used in interviews), Dr Emanuela Chemolli, Abdulrahman Chikhouni, Dr Magda Donia, Gwyneth Edwards, Dr Sujit Sur, Ali Taleb, Natalya Totskaya, John Vongas, and Tasha Wallace. I would also like to thank Dr Michelle Baert, Marian Luncasu, and Kevin Wall, with whom I shared long hours of coworking, writing and thinking, Milena Zullo for constant encouragements, and Anna Settembre, for help with initial data gathering. For indispensible, effective, and valuable administrative, professional, and emotional support at all the right times, I wish to thank Wela Dohmen, Karen Fiddler, Dr Kamal Argheyd, and Dr Stéphane Brutus whose mindfulness casts enduring examples. The deepest gratitude goes to my family, who poured a continuous cocktail of love, patience, and support over the last years, which made all of this worthwhile. Montréal August 15, 2011