This research investigates the commercialisation processes of handicraft producers in Sabah, Malaysia, and the factors influencing their development and performance. The Malaysian government encourages handicraft production as a full-time activity in dedicated workshops, but the vast majority of producers stay part-time and home-based. The aim of this research is to understand why so few producers switch to a greater level of commercialisation, despite government support. From the literature review, it is found that a combination of person-related and contextual factors influences small enterprise development and performance, but handicraft producers in a developing country context have different characteristics to the firms usually studied in entrepreneurship, so they may follow different development paths. Therefore, qualitative research was carried out (in-depth interviews with 16 handicraft producers), which aimed to understand deeply from the producers’ point of view how they made choices about their enterprises, and the factors that encouraged or inhibited their move to full-time status or workshop premises. It was found that interviewees perceived part-time domestic production to be convenient and flexible, and workshop production to be a big commitment, although factors such as level of perseverance and social networking were influential to these. In the interviews, a complicated relationship between status, premises and enterprise performance was also found. A face-to-face survey was then conducted of 210 handicraft producers in Sabah region, which aimed to test quantitatively the factors that influence producers’ status, premises and performance, and the relationships between them. Through cluster analysis, three groups of producers were identified: (i) ‘high performance full-timers’, (ii)‘part-time professionals’ and (iii) ‘part-time home workers’. The first group contained both domestic and workshop-based producers, all full-time status, and showed highest levels of sales and profits. It was interesting to find that part-time professionals had lower profit levels than part-time home workers, even though almost all part-time professionals produced in workshops, half of them in government assisted workshops. One way ANOVA tests found significant differences between the clusters on thirteen person-related and contextual factors, including producers’ (i)education level, attendance in craft incubator, previous income activity, (ii)self-confidence, perseverance, (iii)skills relating to production, organising and networking, (iv)income maximisation motivation and (v)access to government supports, financial resources and reliable workers. The evidence from the research shows that handicraft producers in Sabah region see many advantages in domestic production, and profit levels can be higher than in workshops. By identifying the different profiles of handicraft producers in Sabah, and the person-related and contextual factors that influence them, this research may help the Malaysian government to develop effective support policies for different types of handicraft producer, including how to encourage more individuals to become ‘high performing full-timers’.

As corporations have attained an increasing focus in the sustainability debate, so have the expectations of their sustainability performance. Rather than having a sole focus on an ad hoc mix of philanthropic actions, researchers now begin to call for businesses to recognize their role in broader societal sustainability challenges. This paper aims to explore the perceived drivers and barriers of corporate sustainability (CS) when a company seeks to take a societal perspective on its contributions to sustainable development. A case study has been conducted on a management consultancy firm to address this, with empirical data stemming from semi-structured interviews and a questionnaire. A systematic literature review was furthermore carried out to study the drivers and barriers identified in prior research, thus obtaining a methodological triangulation. The data was moreover analyzed with theoretical underpinnings from the field of transition management (TM). In doing so, it was possible to begin closing the gap between previous research on the drivers and barriers of CS and those that emerge when moving beyond traditional CS efforts. More specifically, a business transition management (BTM) framework was discussed in relation to the results from the case company, trying to assess whether the elements included align with the identified drivers; and to discuss whether the strategies within could combat the perceived barriers. When analyzing the empirical data and comparing it with the findings from the literature review, many similarities could be found. Client expectations, leadership, organizational culture, and communication were all essential aspects within the case company, and so were they in the literature review, thus, validating much of the findings in previous literature. A key difference, however, appears to be the complexities associated with these when taking a wider, societal perspective on sustainability. Relating this perspective to the activities carried out by employees is perceived to be difficult, and the business case is not fully recognized. It was suggested that aspects from the BTM framework could be utilized to combat the barriers associated with increasing complexities, such as the empowerment of visionary employees with a deeper insight into the complexities in question. The findings of this research endeavor have been complied in a proposed model to widening the perspective of CS efforts. Albeit not definite in its construct, it nonetheless begins to reflect on the interlinkages between TM and previous research on CS drivers and barriers. Additional drivers and barriers can be identified, and the differences between traditional CS initiatives and those that embrace a societal perspective should be further clarified. Still, this model provides a good starting point for further research on this phenomenon. / Allteftersom företag har fått en större roll i hållbarhetsdebatten så har också förväntningarna på deras hållbarhetsarbete ökat. I stället för att enbart fokusera på en ad hoc-blandning av filantropiska åtgärder– såsom slumpmässigt utvalda donationer, marknadsföring och svag hållbarhetsrapportering – börjar forskare nu uppmana företag att erkänna sin roll i bredare samhällsutmaningar för hållbarhet. Denna uppsats syftar till att utforska de upplevda drivkrafterna och barriärerna när ett företag försöker ta ett samhällsperspektiv på deras bidrag till hållbar utveckling. En fallstudie har genomförts på ett konsultföretag för att undersöka detta, med empiriska data från intervjuer och ett frågeformulär. En systematisk litteraturgranskning genomfördes dessutom för att studera de drivkrafter och barriärer som identifierats i tidigare forskning vilket medförde att metodologisk triangulering kunde uppnås. Vidare så analyserades empirin med underlag från Transition Management (TM). På så sätt kunde klyftan mellan dessa forskningsområden börja överbryggas. Mer specifikt så diskuterades ett ramverk för Business Transition Management (BTM) i förhållande till resultaten från fallföretaget, för att därigenom bedöma om detta överensstämmer med de identifierade drivkrafterna och för att diskutera om strategierna inom det ramverket skulle kunna bekämpa de upplevda hindren. Vid analysen av empirin så uppvisas många likheter med de drivande faktorerna och barriärerna som kan identifieras i litteraturöversikten. Kundernas förväntningar, ledarskap, organisationskultur och kommunikation visade sig vara viktiga aspekter inom fallföretaget, vilket de också var i litteraturgranskningen. Således valideras mycket av resultaten i tidigare litteratur. En skillnad verkar emellertid vara komplexiteten i samband med dessa när man tar ett bredare samhällsperspektiv på hållbarhet. Att relatera detta perspektiv till de anställdas projekt upplevs som svårt, och affärsmöjligheten med detta är ännu inte helt erkänt. Aspekter från BTM-ramverket antyds kunna användas för att bekämpa de hinder som är förknippade med den ökande komplexiteten, såsom att framhäva visionärer inom företaget. Slutsatserna av denna forskningsinsats har sammanställts i en föreslagen modell, där övergången till ett bredare hållbarhetsperspektiv presenteras. Trots att modellen i sig inte är vetenskapligt beprövad ännu, så bidrar den ändock med en reflektion kring sammanlänkningarna mellan TM och tidigare forskning om hållbarhetsarbetens drivande faktorer och barriärer. Ytterligare drivkrafter och barriärer kan identifieras, och skillnaderna mellan traditionella hållbarhetsinitiativ och de som omfattar ett samhällsperspektiv bör klargöras ytterligare. Trots detta så ger denna modell en bra utgångspunkt för ytterligare forskning om det undersökta fenomenet.