Essays on strategies for sustainable entrepreneurship

Guide(s)

Jose, P D

Department

Strategy

Area

Strategy

University

Indian Institute of Management Bangalore

Place

Bangalore

Publication Date

3-31-2026

Year Awarded

March 2026

Year Completed

March 2026

Year Registered

June 2021

Abstract

This dissertation explores the strategic dimensions of sustainability among startups, focusing on how they gain legitimacy, secure funding, and navigate emerging market categories. While prior research has centered on incumbents, this work shifts attention to nascent ventures and their role in shaping sustainability strategies. The first essay reviews literature on funding in sustainable entrepreneurship, highlighting a gap in understanding how capital influences the development and impact of sustainability ventures. The second essay examines how sustainability trends and categorical positioning affect venture funding in the U.S. food and agriculture sector, revealing that trend alignment increases funding likelihood, moderated by categorical span. The third essay introduces the concept of categorical equifinality, showing how startups strategically use convergence and differentiation in response to environmental cues. Using advanced text analysis on news and startup data in the vegan sector, it demonstrates how startups legitimize themselves through strategic categorical positioning. Together, the essays offer new insights into sustainability strategy in entrepreneurial contexts.

Pagination

iv, 255p.

Copyright

Indian Institute of Management Bangalore

Document Type

Dissertation

DAC Chairperson

Jose, P D

DAC Members

Venkataraman, Vijay; Levasseur, Ludvig

Type of Degree

Ph.D.

Relation

DIS-IIMB-FPM-P26-08

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