Hybrid Organizations: A Micro-Level Strategy for SDGs Implementation: A Positional Paper

• Main Author: Michele Bianchi
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2021-08-01
• Series: Sustainability
• Subjects: SDGs; sustainability; hybrid organizations; social economy; public–private partnership; sustainable firms
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/16/9415

(1) Background: The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are a set of objectives and sub-targets that aim to promote a more comprehensive system for sustainability, peace, and social justice. The SDGs propose a more holistic approach to the evolution of society, enlarging the responsibilities and roles for their implementation; therefore, it is worthwhile asking who will be in charge of the processes to develop adequate strategies. (2) Methods: This is a positional paper based on a literature review about the two main topics of this analysis: hybrid organizations and the SDGs’ governance. (3) Results: The hybrids combine diverse institutional logics within a unique organizational structure as a central tool for SDG implementation. The scientific literature explains how this organizational form is capable of mitigating possible tensions and trade-offs stemming from its heterogeneity and how hybrid structures can prove to be a useful solution for SDG implementation at the micro-level. (4) Conclusion: Although hybrid organizations can be a valuable aid to sustainable development, the absence of clear-cut coordination and responsibility structures at the macro-level could jeopardize efforts at the micro-level. In light of this hypothesis, this paper argues that hybrid organizations cannot be left in isolation in this mission, especially as the SDGs’ rationality is based on a new, holistic vision of development, which exposes a risk of implausibility surrounding macro-level political forces.