Corporate sustainability approaches and practices: The study on SMEs

Seen as an alternative to traditional growth and profit maximization model, a new management paradigm the corporate sustainability does not deny growth and profitability. While accepting the importance of the realization of corporates social goals related to environmental protection sustainable development, social justice, equality and economic development.This study aims to identify Turkish SMEs, which are trying to continue their practices on a dynamic and complex economic environment despite many disadvantages, perception of corporate sustainability, their use of sustainability management tools on different implementations and the factors and obstacles that lead them to corporate sustainability practices. A research with quantitative methods on 350 SMEs in Istanbul which are operating on food industry has been made for this reason. According to obtained data, the Turkish SMEs are having internalization problems on sustainability issues because of some reasons such as the financial inabilities they face, organizational problems, qualified personal concerns. Managers' obligations to take care of all business activities. In spite of this, the reasons of insufficient levels of sustainability practices are identified as because of the pressure of large scale corporations that the being of the contract manufacturer or supplier or the necessity of legal obligation. Keywords: Corporate sustainability, corporate sustainability approach, corporate sustainability practices.