The present paper wants to represent an advancement of the scientific trend on company social sustainability and its social roles. Particularly, the paper overcomes Elkington triple-bottom-line model, highlighting that sustainability and responsibility concepts are not sufficient goals to company survival if they are aimed only at the business ends. Therefore, the authors argue that company survival could be lasting if it will be based on its economic aims to reach final social objects.
The comparative analysis presented shows that although they have a predisposition at the level of corporate policy to pay attention to sustainability and to the practices of attitudes of programs to reduce pollution, waste and water resources used, the companies do not fully show social and values commitment.
Therefore, the research insights highlight a prevalent focus on consumer satisfaction, that we could consider as a mere means to reach a better market positioning, and a lacking attention to social ends both in mission claims and in final aims.
Moreover, the paper tries to give a contribution to scientific and practitioner fields showing that companies, both profit and no-profit, are increasingly community members and social actors setting forth this role, reaching the social legitimation, claiming and planning their social ends-commitment.
The present work contributes directly to the body of knowledge on social innovation compared with CSR and circular economy, as possible enabling factors for the development of Agenda 2030 17 goals.
Policy makers and managers in CE development policies and CSR models should transform CE principles in corporate culture values.
This effort should give contribution to create corporates with CE values and, increasingly, social actor committed in Agenda 2030 goals achievement.
The limitations are mainly related to the limited target and sector, for this reason the authors consider the proposed study as a first step to define a comprehensive model.
The future research steps could concern the qualitative analysis to verify the firm social value level in the mission implemented in daily behaviors. Moreover, it could be useful to carry out a SROI (social return on investment) analysis evaluating firm social impacts and noticing future scientific interests.
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