Prof. Spraul’s current research interests are sustainability management with an emphasis on cross-sector relations and circular economy. Her research has been published in scientific outlets such as Business & Society, International Journal of Public Administration, Journal of Business Ethics, and Nonprofit & Voluntary Sector Quarterly.
As a research group – as well as in our teaching – we focus on the topic of sustainability management. In our understanding of sustainability management, we are guided by the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, a United Nations “Plan of Action for People, Planet and Prosperity” that includes 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Guided by this Vision 2030, we see our primary role as a business administration department as working to develop solutions for SDG #12, Sustainable Consumption and Production. As a society-wide issue, research on sustainability and sustainable consumption and production cannot be limited to individual stakeholders. Therefore, at the organizational level, we address the sustainability management of actors in the three sectors of market (e.g., for-profit companies), civil society (e.g., non-profit organizations), and public sector (e.g., public administration). Due to the complexity of the topic, not only the actors themselves are usually considered, but also interorganizational and intersectoral networks (SDG No. 17: Partnerships for the Goals) and their sociocultural, ecological and political-economic environment. In this overall system, individuals with their abilities, skills and characteristics play a key role, significantly influencing not only organizations and networks, but also the socio-cultural, ecological and political-economic environment.
Against the background of this multi-level framework, our research strategy currently focuses on the following research areas:
Digitalization as a path to sustainable development
Business models and eco-innovations for the circular economy
Sustainability management at the individual level
Sustainability management at the organizational level
Sustainability and digital transformation
University management in the context of sustainability
Service learning and experiential learning at universities
Nonprofit management
Public management and public-private partnerships
Sustainability Governance
