Corporate sustainability management under market uncertainty

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to understand how market uncertainty affects sustainability management for long-term survival and growth. Design/methodology/approach: Structural equation modeling is applied to evaluate the research model using data from a survey of 210 firms in China. Findings: Empirical findings show that market uncertainty encourages entrepreneurship, which is an impetus for sustainability management. Economic and environmental responsibility positively affects balanced scorecard, but social responsibility does not. Research limitations/implications: The study results show that economic and environmental responsibility is essential for success, but social responsibility appears to lack effect. Therefore, future research might further explore why social responsibility fails to enhance corporate performance. Practical implications: When firms consider sustainability management for long-term survival and growth, they should not only strive to grow regional economic benefits but also adhere to environmental regulations and protect the local ecosystem. Originality/value: This study observes how market uncertainty, entrepreneurship and corporate sustainability (economic, environmental and social responsibility) affect the overall performance of firms in China.