This chapter briefly summarises the development of the debate on corporate sustainability in academia and practice since the 1960s. Building on this synopsis, the edited volume is positioned within the contemporary discussions on sustainability management.
Furthermore, the chapter introduces the conceptual structure of the book chapters, the ‘Triple I’ approach, which is used to present the findings from each country in a consistent manner. The ‘Triple I’ approach constitutes a comprehensive scheme for analysing corporate sustainability, as it focuses on the companies’ intention to pursue sustainability management (i.e. motivation; issues), the integration of sustainability in the organisation (i.e. connecting sustainability to the core business; involving corporate functions; using drivers of business cases for sustainability) and the actual implementation of sustainability management measures (i.e. stakeholder management; sustainability management tools and standards; measurements).
Likewise, the chapter sets up a framework for comparing the international results, which allows positioning each country within the international context.
Lastly, the reader is provided with an overview of the edited volumes chapters
and their key contributions.