Management of Environmental Quality: An International JournalStrategic sustainability management and export performanceCarlos Henrique da Rocha Vencato Clandia Maffini Gomes Flavia Luciane Scherer Jordana MarquesKneipp Roberto Schoproni Bichueti

Article information:To cite this document:Carlos Henrique da Rocha Vencato Clandia Maffini Gomes Flavia Luciane Scherer Jordana MarquesKneipp Roberto Schoproni Bichueti , (2014),"Strategic sustainability management and export performance",Management of Environmental Quality: An International Journal, Vol. 25 Iss 4 pp. 431 - 445Permanent link to this document:http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/MEQ-02-2013-0014

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Strategic sustainabilitymanagement and export

performanceCarlos Henrique da Rocha Vencato, Clandia Maffini Gomes,

Flavia Luciane Scherer, Jordana Marques Kneipp andRoberto Schoproni Bichueti

Federal University of Santa Maria (UFSM), Santa Maria, Brazil

Abstract

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to analyze the practices of strategic sustainabilitymanagement and the main indicators of export performance in industrial companies of the rubberartifacts sector.Design/methodology/approach – The study characterizes itself as descriptive and quantitativeand has had the intention to analyze the main practices of strategic sustainability management and theexport performance indicators in companies of the artifacts and rubbers sector of the States ofS~ao Paulo and Rio Grande do Sul. For this, one has carried out a survey with companies of the rubbersector. The conceptual model adopted in the study is made up of a set of variables related to thestrategic sustainability management and to the export performance.Findings – The main results have made evident that, in general, companies involve stakeholdersand their employees in sustainable strategies; internationalize themselves via exports, by means ofintermediaries in Brazil and find themselves in an initial internationalization stage. Moreover, it ispossible to maintain that most companies do not believe that sustainability is an initiative separatedfrom company action.Practical implications – One recommends to the studied companies a greater commitment with theinternational strategies, organizing themselves to pressure the government to give a greater support tothe studied sector, and a greater inclusion of sustainability in the organizational strategies, in order toimprove their competitiveness in the local and international market.Originality/value – The analyzed data allowed identify the great importance of sustainability,with few barriers against their implementations. Furthermore, it is possible to say that the actionswhich are toward the practice of sustainability management helped positively for the exportperformance, confirming the hypotheses of this paper.

Keywords Export performance, Sustainability, Strategic

Paper type Research paper

1. IntroductionThe concern of companies about sustainable development and the internationalizationprocess consists of two emerging and highlighted themes in the national sphere.The environmental issue has been gaining a highlighted place in the discussion aboutthe future of the planet. Actions that prioritize the environment preservation, socialequity, and the economic development, are more and more related to the companystrategies vis-a-vis global competition. The success performance in internationalmarkets is the key to reach greater competitiveness and has led the Braziliancompanies to seek international insertion.

The rubber industry, the object of this study, is a representative sector of Brazilianeconomy and one of its challenges consists of developing a differentiation that maylead Brazilian companies to a sustainable competitive advantage. In this sense, theexploration of latex extracted from rubber trees and utilized in the production of

The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available atwww.emeraldinsight.com/1477-7835.htm

Received 27 February 2013Revised 23 March 2013

30 April 201328 July 2013

9 September 2013Accepted 3 October 2013

Management of EnvironmentalQuality: An International Journal

Vol. 25 No. 4, 2014pp. 431-445

r Emerald Group Publishing Limited1477-7835

DOI 10.1108/MEQ-02-2013-0014

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natural rubber can be identified as a differentiation factor, given that it enablesthe reduction of carbon dioxide, through greater plantations of native rubber trees,reduction in oil exploration, a smaller use of synthetic rubber, and reduction ofchemicals necessary to the production of synthetic rubber.

In the international market, besides the positive image of the company anda differentiated product based on sustainability, the inclusion of sustainability in thestrategy of companies constitutes a key factor for their success.

According to Abiarb (2010) and Sindibor (2010), the rubber artifacts industry is animportant sub-sector of Brazilian economy, for corresponding to 1,400 companiesgenerating around 60,000 direct and 100,000 indirect jobs in Brazil, consuming rawmaterials and inputs.

The national production of rubber artifacts shows itself insufficient to the consumermarket, which includes the manufacturing of tires, the artifact activity is responsiblefor the absorption of 20-25 percent of natural rubber and of 27-30 percent of syntheticrubber, besides being always technologically innovating its products to compete withimported products and in the international markets (Abiarb, 2010; Sindibor, 2010).

Based on these data and assumptions, by virtue of the economic representativenessof the Brazilian rubber artifacts industry, there is interest in understanding how theadoption of practices of strategic sustainability management is related with the exportperformance of Brazilian industrial companies of the rubber artifacts sector.

This way, this study has as objective to analyze the adoption of practices of strategicsustainability management and the export performance of industrial companies of therubber artifacts sector.

2. Strategic sustainability managementIn general, the term sustainable development has been defined as sustainabledevelopment as “development which meets the needs of current generations withoutcompromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs” (WorldCommission on Environment and Development, 1987).

While, the term sustainability seems to have come to generally mean “the capacityto maintain,” in the past few decades, it has probably most often been applied to a typeof human societal development – sustainable development. Sustainability might alsomean the capacity to endure and adapt, prompting the question of what existingconditions need to and should be maintained (Starik and Kanashiro, 2013).

The discussion on sustainable development in business context is a relatively newmatter, which started in the 1980s and has changed forever the relationship betweencompany and environment. When analyzing what ecologists and economists think,with regard to this matter, one is able to understand that conventional economictheories cannot gear the future, because they have never considered the impact ofnatural capital. Industries have historically benefited from natural capital, destroyingit, and the current industrial system is based on old accounting principles (Park, 2008).

According to Porter and Kramer (2006), there are four motivations that drivecompanies to incorporate the issue of sustainable development to the businessstrategy: moral obligation, for which the obtainment of commercial success musthonor ethical values, ensuring respect to people, communities, and environments;sustainability, according to the definition of the Brundtland report, the needs of thepresent must be met without compromising the capacity of future generations to meettheir needs; the licence to operate, every company needs tacit or explicit permits fromgovernments, communities, and various stakeholders to develop their business; and,

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finally, reputation, the improvement in the company image, the strengtheningof the brand, the morale of the employees, and even the increase in the value of stocks,are factors that make the reputation of a company positive. This way, the activitiesof the sustainable development must be linked to a strategic planning nature(Coral, 2002).

For Placet et al. (2005), the sustainable development is founded on environmentalmonitoring, economic prosperity of the company, and stakeholders’ involvement.

According to Hart and Milstein (2004), actions of sustainability and creationof value to the shareholder must be directly linked, in order to prevent the companiesfrom sacrificing their profits and the value to the shareholder in the name of thepublic good, and for this, one has created the sustainable value model. Within thismodel by Hart and Milstein (2004), an easily identified sustainability opportunityis related to the consumption of raw materials and generation of residues andpollution. With that, there is a focus on the eco-efficiency of the current productswithin the current productive process. For this, one needs an involvement of thecollaborators as well as a strict follow-up of the activities, leading to continuingimprovements, quality control, and a strategy directed to sustainability. Accordingto Hart and Milstein (2004), the global challenges associated to sustainability,seen from the business standpoint, can help identify strategies and practices thatmay contribute to a more sustainable world and, simultaneously, direct value to theshareholder.

According to Porter and Van der Linde (1995), the innovations of productsand processes can serve to improve the environmental performance of companies andmake them obtain benefits or advantages vis-a-vis the competition and a greatcompetitiveness in the international scenario in relation to environmental issues.

For Lacy et al. (2010), the sustainability issues in the strategies of organizations areimportant for the business of the company and for the financial result, once in reducingcosts, having a cleaner production, improving the gas reduction process, among others,one has a significant advantage at the company, for the brand and its reputation in themarket. According to the authors, sustainability has been seen as one of the manyelements in the strategies of companies to build their reputation in the market,highlighting that the commitment to the sustainability issue in the strategies oforganizations has been growing since 2007 and is becoming a backdrop to face theworld economic crisis and this leads the organizations to include the environmental,social, and economic issues in the organizational strategies.

Schaltegger and Synnestvedt (2002) argue that the relationship betweenenvironmental and economic performance has been the subject of debate in recentyears, with results that show two distinct points of view. For the authors, one of thepoints of view argues that improving environmental performance causes, primarily,additional costs for the companies and, therefore, it reduces profitability. The othergroup of authors argues that better environmental performance provides costreduction and increase in sales and thus it provides the improvement of economicperformance.

In turn, Schaltegger and Synnestvedt (2002) argue that not only the level ofenvironmental performance, but mainly the kind of environmental managementinfluences the economic result. The authors argue that to understand and measurethe links between environmental performance and economic success it is crucial toanalyze the quality of environmental management and the actions taken, in orderto improve the environmental performance of the most economical way.

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3. Internationalization and export performanceInternationalization is still rather incipient in underdeveloped or newly industrializedcountries which have started to commercialize their products in the global scenario.

According to Johanson and Vahlne (1977), internationalization is a process in whichthe experiential knowledge of a specific market is the main point, or still, as a resultof a series of incremental decisions of companies, related to the growth of theirinternational involvement.

One can also say that internationalization is a sequential learning process, whichgoes from export to the establishment of a production unit abroad ( Johanson andVahlne, 1990).

According to Dunning (1999), the main reasons that lead a company tointernationalize itself are the availability of natural resources, scarce in the countriesof origin; the existence of cheap labor, permitting the cheap sale of production at solow costs that may offset the additional costs of transport to other markets; and theattractiveness of local markets.

The world is more and more gaining new contours, especially from globalization,the strength of mass media, mobility of the production means, and the reductionof national barriers in all areas. The internationalization process becomes a growingalternative to potentialize the financial return of companies and the increase incompetitiveness. According to Daly and Farley (2004), globalization must not beconfounded with the term internationalization, for it is, in fact, something totallydifferent. Globalization refers to the global economic integration of several oldeconomies into a global economy, mainly through free trade and free capital mobility,but also through easy or uncontrollable migration. The internationalization processrefers to the important increase of the international trade, international relations,treaties, and alliances, etc.

According to Carlson (1975), the internationalization process is similar to carefullywalking on an unknown ground. The overseas operations imply crossing nationalborders, which creates additional uncertainty. Internationalization is a phenomenonthat allows companies to become more competitive, in the internal and externalmarkets, for it permits to explain and understand the strategy and the sources ofsustainable competitive advantages. Companies seem to gain and lose their competitiveposition in the industry, by virtue of their own performance and that of theircompetitors (Porter, 1989).

The search for new markets reflects itself in internationalization motivations and/orreasons. Daniels and Radebaugh (1998, p. 9) point out four main objectives that leadcompanies to seek insertion in foreign trade: “expand their sales, acquire resources,diversify their sources of sales and supplies and minimize the competitive risk.”For Root (1987), the reasons for a company to internationalize itself can be distinct,including a stagnated domestic market, a foreign market in quicker growth than thedomestic one, following clients and competitors who may internationalize themselves,accompanying competitors in oligopolized industries, opposing the entry of foreigncompetitors or, also, getting scale to increase competitiveness inside and outside thedomestic market.

According to Papadopoulos and Martın (2010), the international experienceaffects the international commitment (total commitment of the company in all foreignmarkets) of companies, this one on its turn influences the level of internationalization,and this one helps improve the international experience, influencing at the same timethe export performance.

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One can mention, also, other reasons for internationalization, such as: search forresources in an attempt to obtain better cost conditions; search for market to ensuremarket share and growth of sales in the external markets; and, finally, the search forefficiency in an attempt to obtain benefits in the structure of resources, markets,cultures, and policies. According to Lemaire et al. (1997) and Penrose (1995), the mainmotivator to the internationalization of companies is the globalization of economiesand markets, offering a series of opportunities for an organization to invest and grow.

On the basis of the previous exposition, the model by Papadopoulos andMartın (2010) has an internationalization mechanism similar to the model fromUppsala, but it also distinguishes the international endeavor and the elevated level ofinternationalization, and it connects itself to the international experience and to theexport performance of the company.

4. Method of studyThe study characterizes itself as descriptive and quantitative and has had the intentionto analyze the main practices of strategic sustainability management and the exportperformance in companies of the artifacts and rubbers sector of the states of S~ao Pauloand Rio Grande do Sul. The conceptual model adopted in the study is made up of a setof variables related to the strategic sustainability management and to the exportperformance (Figure 1).

The strategic sustainability management has been analyzed by Lacy et al. (2010),which constitutes a study carried out with CEOs from various global companies aboutthe use of the sustainability theme in the strategies of companies that outstandas an innovative model in the area of sustainability and company strategy. For a betterunderstanding of the model proposed above and mensuration of the research of thesustainability integration process in the company strategy in companies, one hasidentified, in literature, the dimensions of analyses as well as their respective variableswith their indicators utilized by companies in order to evaluate the sustainablemanagement in the strategy of researched companies.

The export performance has been evaluated from the indicators of the research byPapadopoulos and Martın (2010), where one highlights the export performance ofresearched companies, whose conceptual model has been tested in a probabilisticsample of exporters in the Navarra region in Spain, a highly advanced and industrializedregion. For a better understanding of the proposed model and mensuration of theresearch of the international insertion process in the companies, one has identified, inliterature, the dimensions of analyses as well as their respective variables with theirindicators utilized by companies, in order to evaluate the international insertion ofresearched companies. The strategic performance in the export performance refers to

1. Strategic Performance

EXPORT PERFORMANCESTRATEGIC SUSTAINABILITY

MANAGEMENT

Independent Variables

1. External Challenges

2. Internal Challenges

Source: Lacy et al. (2010) and Papadopoulos and Martín (2010)

2. Economic Performance

Dependent VariablesFigure 1.

Conceptual research model

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the perception of researched executives in relation to the impacts from the performanceof the company in the international market. The economic performance includes theperception as to sales, profitability, and lucrativeness of exports for researched companies.

For the data collection, one has elaborated a structured questionnaire based on therevision of literature and on the conceptual model.

The target population of the study is made up of companies associated to theAssociac~ao Brasileira da Industria de Artefatos de Borracha – ABIARB, the Sindicatodas Industrias de Borrachas do Rio Grande do Sul – SINBORSUL, and the Sindicato daIndustria de Artefatos de Borracha no Estado de S~ao Paulo – SINDIBOR. The numberof companies associated to the SINDIBOR and ABIARB is 150 and the estimatednumber of companies of the SINBORSUL is 55. One has contacted all the companieswhich were the object of the study, being that the sample has been constituted bycompanies that have effectively received, responded, and returned the questionnairesduly filled in. Of these totals, 32 companies have been willing to take part in theresearch, making feasible the quantitative study.

The participation index has been of 16 percent. Although the rate of return is notconsidered high, the results allow the specific analysis of the characteristics andbehaviors of the companies studied. This reply index is close to the average found inmost researches of this nature and meets the research analysis needs. However, theevidence found cannot be extrapolated to the research universe considered.

The data has been tabulated and analyzed with the help of Microsoft Excel andStatistical Package for the Social Sciences – SPSS software, by adopting univariateand bivariate analysis models.

5. Analysis and discussion of resultsInitially, one presents the data related to the characterization of companies, next, oneevidences the results about strategic sustainability management and export performance.

5.1 Characterization of companiesThe characterization of researched companies is analyzed from the verification of thefrequencies observed in relation to: company existence time, operations field, numberof employees, and gross operational revenue of the company in 2010. The existencetime of researched companies is presented in Table I.

The research data evidence that the average existence time of companies in therubber sector is of 35 years, being that the oldest company of the sector is 87 and thenewest is five. The average existence time of companies is superior amonginternationalized companies, which leads to the assumption that the level of maturity,experience, and operation in the market may contribute to this internationalization

Internationalized Non-internationalized

Average (years) 38.17 31.00Median (years) 36 32Standard deviation 22.61 19.39Variation co-efficient (%) 59.24 62.55Minimum time (years) 5 6Maximum time (years) 87 70Total of companies 19 13

Table I.Company existencetime (years)

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process. The data referring to the operation field of researched companies arepresented in Table II.

One notices, from the analyzed data, that the biggest concentration of the companiestaking part in the research, among internationalized companies, is in the light artifactsindustry. Among non-internationalized companies, one highlights the rubber industry.This evidences that most researched companies are only in two segments of the rubbersector, which denotes the elevated degree of concentration of companies of this sectorin these segments.

It is convenient to highlight that the rubber industry presents a very elevatedvariety of products of rubber artifacts and that, many times, they can be confused withlight artifacts. The number of employees of the companies is presented in Table III.

Researched companies have been classified according to the number of employeesin micro, small, average, and big-sized, according to a criterion adopted by the InstitutoBrasileiro de Geografia e Estatıstica (IBGE). This way, it is possible to notice, from theanalyzed data, among internationalized companies, that the biggest one of them is ofsmall size and, among non-internationalized companies, the majority is of smallsize. The gross operational revenue of researched companies is presented in Table IV.

Internationalized Non-internationalizedOperation field Frequency % Frequency %

Light artifacts 7 21.9 1 3.1Rubber industry 5 15.6 6 18.8Transformation industry 3 9.4 1 3.1Recognition of tires 2 6.3 2 6.3Raw material 2 6.3 – –Tires – – 2 6.3Others – – 1 3.1Total 19 59.4 13 40.6

Table II.Operation field

Internationalized Non-internationalizedNumber of employees Frequency % Frequency %

Up to 19 employees (micro company) 2 6.3 2 6.3From 20 to 99 employees (small company) 7 21.9 7 21.9From 100 to 499 employees (average company) 7 21.9 1 3.1Above 500 employees (big company) 3 9.4 3 9.4Total 19 59.4 13 40.6

Table III.Number of employees

Internationalized Non-internationalizedOperation field Frequency % Frequency %

Up to R$2.4 million 4 12.5 4 12.5Above R$2.4 million up to R$16 million 5 15.6 7 21.9Above R$16 million up to R$90 million 6 18.8 1 3.1Above R$90 million up to R$300 million 2 6.3 1 3.1Above R$300 million 2 6.3 – –Total 19 59.4 13 40.6

Table IV.Annual gross operational

revenue (ROB)

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The analyzed data, show that among internationalized companies, most companiespresent a gross operational revenue in the range above R$16 million up to R$90 millionand, among those non-internationalized, most companies present a gross operationalrevenue in the range above R$2.4 million up to R$16 million. The data show that,among internationalized companies, that most of them are of medium size and,among non-internationalized companies, most of them are of small size, according toindicators of (BNDES, 2012). The data related to the descriptive measures as to theexport time of researched companies are presented in Table V.

According to the data analyzed in the table, among internationalized companiesmost of them made the first export 11 years ago (an average of 12 years), being that asignificant portion of companies started to export a little over two years ago. Amongthe main products exported by researched companies, one highlights retainers,hoses, diaphragms for brakes, seals, rubber artifacts for the footwear sector, tires, airbladders, treads, recapping of tires, and rubber artifacts for floors and office materials.The data related to the main countries (destinations) of exports by researchedcompanies are presented in Table VI.

The data contained in Table VI permit to analyze that the main destination to whichinternationalized companies export is South America, being highlighted countries likeArgentina and Uruguay; in second place comes Europe, being highlighted countrieslike Germany and Spain. One notices, also, that the east is an important destination ofexports of the rubber artifacts sector, having China as the main destination country forexports. This shows that China must not be a mere exporter but also an excellentimporting market. Table VI shows that the rubber artifacts sector does not considerNorth America destination to be the main market for exports. The data related to themain strategy utilized by the company in the international markets by researchedcompanies are presented in Table VII.

From the analyzed data, among internationalized companies one has verifiedthat most companies present export, by means of intermediaries in Brazil, as the main

Destination of exports Frequency %

South America 40 54.48Europe 16 21.61East 10 13.51North America 4 5.00Central America 3 4.05Africa 1 1.35Total 74 100

Table VI.Relative data of the maindestinations of exports

Time (years)

Average 11.88 yearsMedian 11.00 yearsStandard deviation 8 yearsCV 67.34%No. of internationalized companies 19Not applicable 13Total 32

Table V.Time since thefirst export

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strategy utilized to enter into the international markets. The analyzed data, demonstratedthat companies have little involvement with importers and run smaller risks in theinternational scenario. Presented next are the results of the analysis of the strategicsustainability management and export performance dimensions, respectively.

5.2 Strategic sustainability managementThe strategic sustainability management has been analyzed from the external andinternal challenges of sustainability.

5.2.1 External challenges. The external sustainability challenges are analyzed inrelation to the aspects of the stakeholders’ involvement with researched internationalizedand non-internationalized companies. The data related to the descriptive measures ofanalysis of involvement of stakeholders from researched companies are presentedin Table VIII.

Comparing internationalized and non-internationalized companies, one has verifieda significant difference between the averages only in the involvement with the supplier.One notices, from the analyzed data that, among non-internationalized companies,the involvement of external partners with consumers, suppliers, and stakeholdersseems to be superior. This makes evident that most researched non-internationalizedcompanies are concerned about stakeholders’ involvement, adding an externalpartnership for the sustainable and economic development. It is important to highlightthat the intensity of the actions in the involvement of external partners in thesustainable strategy of researched companies is also elevated, being able to indicate

Operation field Frequency %

Export, by means of intermediaries in Brazil 8 28.13Export, by means of intermediaries abroad 1 3.13Export, by means of the company’s own units located in Brazil(a department or a business unit) 4 12.50Strategic alliance 1 3.13Production contract of parts of a product 2 6.25Export, by means of the company’s own units located abroad(office, sales branch, or subsidiary) 2 6.25Not applicable 13 40.63Total 32 100

Table VII.Main strategy utilizedby the company in theinternational markets

Averagea

External challenges Internationalized Non-internationalized Test t

Consumer’s involvement 0.55 0.71 0.193Supplier’s involvement 0.65 0.82 0.076*Adoption of practices by the company 0.57 0.55 0.914External partners’ involvement 0.58 0.67 0.441Stakeholders’ involvement 0.60 0.65 0.676Cooperation of other organizations 0.58 0.59 0.918

Notes: aInterval average (between 0 and 1). *,**,***Positive significant correlation at p¼ 0.10; 0.05;0.01 levels, respectively

Table VIII.Descriptive measuresof external challenges

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that sustainability actions in the strategies are relevant for all those involved in thissector. At internationalized companies, however, the adoption of practices by thecompany and cooperation of other organizations are relevant as to export practices.According to Porter and Van der Linde (1995), the innovations of products andprocesses can serve to improve the environmental performance of companies andmake them obtain benefits or advantages vis-a-vis the competition and a greatcompetitiveness in the international scenario in relation to environmental issues.

The results make evident that the analyzed companies seek external partnersto leverage the strategies linked to sustainability and environmental policies. Thesedimensions must be in consonance with the needs of their stakeholders to meet thesocial pressures of preservation of the world resources and of a more sustainabledistribution. According to Placet et al. (2005), this thought maintains that the sustainabledevelopment is founded on environmental monitoring, economic prosperity of thecompany and stakeholders involvement. One can notice that the actions related tostakeholders involvement are considered to be of high intensity to most researchedcompanies, indicating an elevated level of involvement of consumers, suppliers,shareholders, investors, and external partners of the rubber sector.

Therefore, one can conclude that the strategic sustainability management, involvingstakeholders, is the right path for companies in the competitive international scenario.

5.2.2 Internal challenges. The internal sustainability challenges are analyzed inrelation to the aspects of sustainability importance, sustainability implantationbarriers, change of mindset, sustainable technological innovation, sustainabilityguidelines in the company’s strategy, internal education directed to sustainability,sustainability investment sector, and sustainability in the PLR (participation in profitsand results) of researched companies. The descriptive measures related to the analysisof the sustainability importance of researched companies are presented in Table IX.

According to the data analyzed in Table IX, among internationalized companies,most of them present actions linked to the importance of sustainability. One noticesthat the importance of sustainability for senior management member seems to begreater than for employees. Within this group of companies, one notices an elevatedindex of respondents, considering the existence of internal barriers as to the implantationof sustainability. The high costs for implantation of sustainability programs, fear of newchallenges and market instabilities, financial viability, and change of the entrepreneur’smindset have been some of the most mentioned examples of barriers of the research.

The data related to descriptive measure as to the change of mindset in researchedcompanies make evident that the average in trying to sensitize employees and the highboard of directors in favor of sustainability is greater among non-internationalizedcompanies. These data associated to those of the analysis of sustainabilityimplantation barriers point out to the fact that, even existing apparent barriers tosustainability implantation, companies seek to sensitize employees and the board ofdirectors as to sustainability actions.

One can conclude that, both in internationalized and non-internationalizedcompanies, the high board of directors and employees are involved in this process,participating in meetings, seminars, talks, and workshops in search of sustainabilitycommitment within the company.

As to sustainable technological innovation in researched companies, the data makeevident that internationalized companies seek to innovate more, in order to integrate thesustainable practices in developing products and processes than non-internationalizedcompanies. One observes, also, that the sustainable practices in managing internationalized

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and non-internationalized companies do not have the same intensity in relation to theinnovation of sustainable practices in developing products and processes, indicatingthat the management can stay in second plan as to the integration of sustainable practices.

One concludes, this way, that researched internationalized companies place moreemphasis on sustainable practices in developing products and processes than onmanaging the venture.

Average

Internal challenges InternationalizedNon-

internationalized Test t

1. Highlights the importance of sustainability for employees 0.78 0.68 0.3042. Highlights the importance of sustainability for board

of directors members 0.81 0.73 0.4223. There are internal barriers to the implantation of

sustainability 0.40 0.51 0.4644. Seeks to sensitize employees in favor of

sustainability 0.73 0.80 0.4345. Seeks to sensitize the senior board of directors in

favor of sustainability 0.77 0.80 0.7936. Innovates in sustainable practices in product

development 0.69 0.56 0.3297. Innovates in sustainable practices in process

technologies 0.63 0.52 0.2688. Innovates in sustainable practices in the venture

administration 0.60 0.48 0.3859. Technological innovation to meet sustainability goals 0.64 0.40 0.331

10. Integrates the main principles of sustainabledevelopment in the company strategy 0.63 0.33 0.065

11. Believes that sustainability is inserted in theorganizational strategy 0.63 0.33 0.027**

12. Believes that sustainability is an initiative separatedfrom company action 0.35 0.23 0.321

13. Believes that sustainability is an important elementto reach a reputation in the market 0.71 0.55 0.257

14. Invests in the formation of managers in relation tosustainability 0.39 0.29 0.435

15. Invests in the training of employees in relation tosustainability 0.43 0.26 0.141

16. Develops executives exclusively linked to in-company sustainability actions 0.24 0.16 0.401

17. Has a sector responsible for sustainable management 0.20 0.61 0.088*18. Proportionates the integration of the sustainability

sector with the other sectors of the company 0.26 0.16 0.38819. Incorporates sustainability in the PLR 0.24 0.07 0.17620. Incorporates sustainability in the employees’

performance evaluation process 0.27 0.09 0.092*21. Has techniques for controlling gas emissions to the

atmosphere 0.37 0.27 0.49722. Has regulations or certification directed to

sustainability 0.29 0.07 0.057*

Notes: aInterval average (between 0 and 1). *,**,***Positive significant correlation at p¼ 0.10; 0.05;0.01 levels, respectively

Table IX.Descriptive measuresof internal challenges

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The concern related to the sustainability guidelines in the company strategy is not ahighly worrying aspect for researched internationalized and non-internationalizedcompanies. One notices, this way, that researched companies do not believe thatsustainability is inserted in the organization strategy and this is an initiative separatedfrom the company action.

However, there is an almost unanimous consensus that sustainability is animportant element for achieving reputation in the market.

The companies, both internationalized and non-internationalized, notice thatsustainability is important for reputation, but few insert and integrate theirsustainability in their organization strategy. One also observes that, as to the internaleducation directed to sustainability, in general both internationalized and non-internationalized companies invest in the specific training of managers in relation tosustainability and they also do not seek to develop executives exclusively linkedto sustainability action in the company. Among internationalized companies, theinvolvement of all the collaborators as to the issue of employees’ training in relationto internal sustainability is perceptible and of great importance. In compensation,both internationalized and non-internationalized companies do not intend to implant asustainability sector, due to the segmentation that this may cause within the company.

One also notices that, within the companies, as a whole, few incorporatesustainability in the PLR, in the employees’ performance assessment and that theyhave control techniques for gas emissions to the atmosphere and regulations orcertifications directed to sustainability. However, the high indices of non-replies makeevident that these organizations cannot be worried about measuring and assessingsustainability actions in their organizations. The lack of control of gas emissionsand certifications directed to sustainability shows a lack of interest, on the part ofcompanies, in improving the conditions of their organizations in the productive market.

5.3 Export performanceThe export performance is analyzed by the strategic performance, economicperformance, and export performance indicators of researched companies. The datarelated to the strategic performance of researched companies are presented in Table X.

In the analysis carried out in relation to the strategic performance of researchedinternationalized companies, it is possible to notice that most of them do not receiveany type of support for entry into the export market, on the part of governmentalbodies. The data also make evident the development of strategies that aim to improveexports. The improvement in market share, administrative management, quality ofproducts, professional training, and modification of portfolio were items that did notshow any significant intensity in the research.

6. Final considerationsThe main objective of the research has consisted of analyzing the practices of strategicsustainability management and the export performance of industrial companies of therubber artifacts sector. The results have made evident that the main characteristicsthat make up the organization profile of the studied companies consist of: medium-sized companies; production centralized in the operation field of rubber and lightartifacts industry, of recognition of tires and transformation industry, with elevatedfoundation time and gross operational revenue.

Among the main practices developed by companies in sustainability managementare the involvement of consumers in the development of sustainable strategy, the

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supplier in the socio-environmental management, and adoption of practices involvingshareholders in the sustainable strategy. One notices, however, that the elevated indexdoes not apply in relation to these issues and can mean its incipient incidence amongresearched companies.

One notices, in the analyzed data, the elevated importance attributed to sustainability,indicating a small number of barriers in relation to the implantation of the same.The integration of sustainable practices in the development of products, processes, andventure management, having the technological innovation as an important mechanismfor meeting goals related to sustainability, has been considered to be important, revealingthat companies have sought to orient the activities related to sustainability associated toinvestments in technological innovation, and this leads to a better export performance.

The companies have sought, also, to invest in the training of employees and do notintend to invest in specific sectors in this area, for believing in internal segmentation.In general, companies do not incorporate sustainability in the systematic of the PLRand of the performance assessment. Moreover, it has been possible to observe thatsome companies have a certification directed to sustainability and most of them do nothave control techniques for gas emissions to the atmosphere.

The indicators related to international experience make evident that mostcompanies have started international business between 1997 and 2000. The mainstrategy utilized by companies in the international markets is export, by means ofintermediaries in Brazil and by units of their own located in Brazil, indicating anincipient internationalization phase.

Finally, one can conclude that companies do not receive, in general, support from thegovernment as to exports, do not utilize strategies that may respond to the pressurefrom external competitors and have obtained small improvements in the internationalmarket share, administrative management, and training of professionals, from theexpansion in foreign markets.

Descriptive measuresExport performance Average Median SD CV

1. Strategic performanceReceives some type of support for entry into the export market,as for example, of commercial association, governmental aid 0.18 0.00 0.33 183.33Develops export strategies that seek to guarantee greater awareness,social and environmental, in relation to productsand processes 0.27 0.00 0.38 140.74Utilizes strategies that respond to the pressure of competitorsconcerning exports 0.36 0.25 0.39 108.33Has obtained improvement in market share 0.38 0.30 0.35 92.11Has obtained improvements in the administrative management fromthe expansion in foreign markets 0.39 0.20 0.39 100.00Has obtained improvements in the quality of products from theexpansion in foreign markets 0.49 0.55 0.40 81.63Has obtained improvements in the professional training of employeesfrom the expansion in foreign markets 0.49 0.55 0.41 83.672. Economic performanceHas presented evolution in sales from exports 0.41 0.30 0.35 85.37Has increased participation in the international market 0.42 0.35 0.39 92.86Utilizes indicators to assess its export performance 0.38 0.25 0.40 105.26

Table X.Descriptive measure

of export performance

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One recommends to the studied companies a greater commitment with theinternational strategies, organizing themselves to pressure the government to give agreater support to the studied sector and a greater inclusion of sustainability in theorganizational strategies, in order to improve their competitiveness in the local andinternational market.

The results of this study contribute to the academic community expanding thediscussion on the sustainability issues allied with export performance, consideringthat there are few studies addressing these issues together. Regarding the practicalimplications, the study provides applied analysis evidencing the reality of companiesin the rubber sector regarding the adoption of strategic management practices ofsustainability.

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Corresponding authorJordana Marques Kneipp can be contacted at: jordanakneipp@yahoo.com.br

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