Creating a Culture of Sustainability using Mission Statements of Cooperative Organizations

Authors

  • Nooraslinda Abdul Aris Faculty of Accountancy, Universiti Teknologi MARA, 40450 Shah Alam, Selangor, Malaysia
  • Rohana Othman Accounting Research Institute, Universiti Teknologi MARA, 40450 Shah Alam, Selangor, Malaysia
  • Wan Mohd Yusof Wan Chik Faculty of Contemporary Islamic Studies, Sultan Zainal Abidin University, 21300 Kuala Terengganu, Terengganu, Malaysia
  • Safawi Abdul Rahman Faculty of Information Management, Universiti Teknologi MARA, 40150 Puncak Perdana, Selangor, Malaysia

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.21834/e-bpj.v1i1.237

Keywords:

Mission Statement, Sustainability, Culture, Cooperative

Abstract

 

Mission statements are recognized as effective strategic management tools that influence firms’ performance. The evolution of a culture of sustainability begins with a mission statement that strikes a balance between financial performance and social commitments. The clear articulation of sustainability as part of the firm’s mission, values, goals, and strategy are key factors in fostering sustainability focused culture. This study illustrates the fundamental tenets of the culture of organizational sustainability model proposed by Galpin, Whitttington, and Bell (2015) using selected cooperatives in Malaysia. The contents of the mission statements were then analyze using the nine elements model by Pearce and David (1987) in findings its relations to and the existence of sustainability culture within the cooperatives. Findings from the study confirm building an organizational infrastructure that fosters a culture of sustainability results in positive employee and organizational-level sustainability performance. A reference was made to Bank Rakyat, one of the leading cooperative-based banking in the country for its outstanding performance.

References

Azizi, S., & Makizadeh, V. (2014). Strategic priorities of Iranian companies : an application of mission statement content analysis. Management & Marketing, 9(4), 471-482.

Baetz, M. C., & Bart, C. K. (1996). Developing mission statements which work. Long Range Planning, 29(4), 526-533. doi:10.1016/0024-6301(96)00044-1. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/0024-6301(96)00044-1

Bart, C. K. (1998). The Relationship Between Mission Statements and Firm Performance: An Exploratory Study. Journal of Management Studies, 35(6), 823-853. doi:10.1111/1467-6486.00121. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-6486.00121

Bartkus, B. R., & Glassman, M. (2008). Do firms practice what they preach? The relationship between mission statements and stakeholder management. Journal of Business Ethics, 83(2), 207-216. doi:10.1007/s10551-007-9612-0. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-007-9612-0

Bekmezci, M. (2015). Companies' Profitable Way of Fulfilling Duties towards Humanity and Environment by Sustainable Innovation. In Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences (Vol. 181, pp. 228-240). Elsevier B.V. doi:10.1016/j.sbspro.2015.04.884. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2015.04.884

Blair-Loy, M., Wharton, a. S., & Goodstein, J. (2011). Exploring the Relationship between Mission Statements and Work-Life Practices in Organizations. Organization Studies, 32(3), 427-450. doi:10.1177/0170840610397480. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0170840610397480

Braun, S., Wesche, J. S., Frey, D., Weisweiler, S., & Peus, C. (2012). Effectiveness of mission statements in organizations - A review. Journal of Management and Organization, 18(4), 430-444. doi:10.5172/jmo.2012.18.4.430. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S1833367200000687

David, F. R. (1989). How companies define their mission. Long Range Planning, 22(1), 90-97. doi:10.1016/0024-6301(89)90055-1. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/0024-6301(89)90055-1

Desmidt, S., Prinzie, A., & Decramer, A. (2011). Looking for the value of mission statements: a meta-analysis of 20 years of research. Management Decision, 49(3), 468-483. doi:10.1108/00251741111120806. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/00251741111120806

Donker, H., Poff, D., & Zahir, S. (2007). Corporate Values, Codes of Ethics, and Firm Performance: A Look at the Canadian Context. Journal of Business Ethics, 82(3), 527-537. doi:10.1007/s10551-007-9579-x. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-007-9579-x

Elkington, J. (1998). ACCOUNTING FOR THE TRIPLE BOTTOM LINE. Measuring Business Excellence. doi:10.1108/eb025539. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/eb025539

ErdoÄŸan, D., & Durmaz, V. (2014). Adopting Mission and Vision Statements by Employees: The Case of TAV Airports. In Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences (Vol. 150, pp. 251-262). Elsevier. doi:10.1016/j.sbspro.2014.09.051. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2014.09.051

Galpin, T., Whitttington, J. L., & Bell, G. (2015). Is your sustainability strategy sustainable? Creating a culture of sustainability. Corporate Governance: The International Journal of Business in Society, 15(1), 1-17. doi:10.1108/CG-01-2013-0004. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/CG-01-2013-0004

Goodman, M. B. (1994). Corporate Communication: Theory and Practice. (M. B. Goodman, Ed.). State University of New York Press.

Harter, J. K., Schmidt, F. L., & Hayes, T. L. (2002). Business-unit-level relationship between employee satisfaction, employee engagement, and business outcomes: A meta-analysis. Journal of Applied Psychology, 87(2), 268-279. doi:10.1037/0021-9010.87.2.268. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.87.2.268

Ireland, R. D., & Hirc, M. A. (1992). Mission statements: Importance, challenge, and recommendations for development. Business Horizons, 35(3), 34-42. doi:10.1016/0007-6813(92)90067-J. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/0007-6813(92)90067-J

Kirk, G., & Nolan, S. B. (2010). Nonprofit mission statement focus and financial performance. Nonprofit Management and Leadership, 20(4), 473-490. doi:10.1002/nml.20006. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/nml.20006

Kuzu, Ö. H., Gökbel, H., & Güleş, H. K. (2013). Developing Sustainable Relations with Internal and External Stakeholders in Universities: Vision And Mission Views. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 103, 281–289. doi:10.1016/j.sbspro.2013.10.336 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2013.10.336

Pearce, J. A. I., & David, F. (1987). Corporate Mission Statements: The Bottom Line. The Academy of Management Executive, 1(2), 109-115. DOI: https://doi.org/10.5465/ame.1987.4275821

Pitrėnaitė-Žilėnienė, B., & Mikulskienė, B. (2014). Bridging political , managerial and legislative components of sustainability strategy with business demands. In Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences (Vol. 150, pp. 950–957). Elsevier. doi:10.1016/j.sbspro.2014.09.107 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2014.09.107

Raissa, D. R., Setiawan, R. P., & Rahmawati, D. (2014). Identification of Indicators Influencing Sustainability of Minapolitan Area in Lamongan Regency. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 135, 167-171. doi:10.1016/j.sbspro.2014.07.342. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2014.07.342

Rajasekar, J. (2013). A Comparative Analysis of Mission Statement Content and Readability. Journal of Management Policy & Practice, 14(6), 131-148.

Ryan, A. M., Schmit, M. J., & Johnson, R. (1996). Attitudes and Effectiveness: Examining Relations at an Organizational Level. Personnel Psychology, 49(4), 853-882. doi:10.1111/j.1744-6570.1996.tb02452.x. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1744-6570.1996.tb02452.x

Schein, E. H. (2004). Organizational Culture and Leadership (3rd Editio.). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. doi:10.1080/09595230802089917. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/09595230802089917

Schneider, B., Hanges, P. J., Smith, D. B., & Salvaggio, A. N. (2003). Which comes first: Employee attitudes or organizational financial and market performance? The Journal of Applied Psychology, 88(5), 836-851. doi:10.1037/0021-9010.88.5.836. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.88.5.836

Speziale, M., & Klovien, L. (2014). The relationship between performance measurement and sustainability reporting : A literature review. In Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences (Vol. 156, pp. 633-638). Latvia: Elsevier. doi:10.1016/j.sbspro.2014.11.254 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2014.11.254

United Nations. (1987). Report of the World Commission on Environment and Development (Vol. 42/187). doi:10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199560103.003.0005. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199560103.003.0005

Zainon, S., Ahmad, S. A., Atan, R., Wah, Y. B., Bakar, Z. A., & Sarman, S. R. (2014). Legitimacy and Sustainability of Social Enterprise: Governance and Accountability DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2014.06.022

Downloads

Published

2016-06-27

How to Cite

Abdul Aris, N., Othman, R., Wan Chik, W. M. Y., & Abdul Rahman, S. (2016). Creating a Culture of Sustainability using Mission Statements of Cooperative Organizations. Environment-Behaviour Proceedings Journal, 1(1), 387–393. https://doi.org/10.21834/e-bpj.v1i1.237