Fitting in by Talking Through: Reconciling Strategy-Image Tensions and Making Sustainability Fit Legacy

A distinct obstacle to mainstreaming sustainability is when strategic actions to integrate sustainability create tensions between a firm’s established identity and its projected image. This study examines how such strategy-image tensions are managed. Based on a qualitative, longitudinal study of luxury sports car manufacturer Porsche during the introduction of electric cars, the analysis traces the discursive process of implementing strategic actions that challenge the legacy product. The findings suggest the reconciliation of strategy-image tensions is a three-stage process: detaching the image from the legacy product, constructing a positive narrative around the new product, and endorsing the fit of the new product category to the corporation. The study contributes to research on incumbent change and managing identity-related tensions. It further contributes to the literature on sustainability mainstreaming with a critical discussion of the ambivalent dynamics that arise when established firms attempt to make sustainability “fit” their legacy.