Enhancing the ethical behaviour of sustainable entrepreneurs through responsible innovation – the case of new technology-based firms in Europe

To solve societal challenges, such as climate change, socio-ethical issues must be integrated into innovations and managed during the sustainable entrepreneurship process. Responsible innovation aims to align and incorporate socio-ethical factors into innovations. However, there are questions over how best to apply responsible innovation within industry contexts. This research (1) develops a workshop method which helps sustainable entrepreneurs to identify and consider socio-ethical factors in a systematic way, and (2) explores its application and impact across 12 cases of sustainable entrepreneurship. The results show that while the workshop raises awareness of socio-ethical issues, barriers exist that can prevent the sustainable entrepreneurs from taking action. We highlight that within a model of ethical decision-making, these barriers inhibit the establishment of moral intent, a key step in ethical decision-making. It is concluded that while raising awareness of socio-ethical issues is a necessary condition, it is not sufficient for the implementation of responsible innovation in industry contexts