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Purpose
This study aims to offer a mid-range theory conceptualization of factors central to understanding and facilitating business actor engagement (BAE). Reports on a study of real estate companies and their sustainable development goal (SDG) driven business initiatives. The aim is to identify the factors that need to be in place to facilitate positive engagement amongst actors in business-to-business (B2B) settings.


Design/methodology/approach
A case study of real estate companies (landlords of business premises) and their business customers (tenants of offices and warehouses) – comprising interviews and workshops – offer insights related to the factors that need to be in place to facilitate BAE types and outcomes.


Findings
The identified central factors of BAE – needed to understand and facilitate positive engagement to unfold – are the actors' perception of: willingness (to act), resourcefulness (to contribute and solve issues) and influence (to affect decisions) regarding solutions related to the business initiative at hand. Failing to facilitate these factors may result in negative outcomes of BAE where "engagement" merely constitutes perceived obligations and responsibilities.


Research limitations/implications
The study offers theoretical and managerial insights on how to manage the factors needed for BAE. It also sheds light on how actors can use SDG-driven business initiatives to achieve sustainability goals.


Originality/value
It contributes to the concept of BAE, by emphasizing the dynamics of engagement, from the motivational and behavioral dimensions specific to B2B settings. It offers insights how to managerially cogovern rather than control BAE. It presents central factors needed to include and capacitate customers, facilitating successful implementations of SDG-driven business initiatives to reduce absent or negative outcomes.

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to investigate the changes that have taken place in consumer behavior due to the fear, caused by the spread of the coronavirus, in parallel to studying how supermarket activities have changed during the pandemic.Design/methodology/approachUsing qualitative methods (email interviews and document analysis) and utilizing the few statistics available for the case, the authors performed a comparison between Greece, a country that imposed an early lockdown, and Sweden, which, for its own political reasons, did not lock down, but took other measures instead.FindingsDifferences in consumer behavior and supermarket activities in both countries based on different mentalities and different experiences were identified. Similarities in consumer behavior, but with different motives, were also discovered.Research limitations/implicationsRetailing practitioners and communication executives can apply the findings to manage sales in a time of sharp, unpredictable crisis. The paper aims at integrating existing literature for the academic community and contributes with implications for practitioners and policymakers to reduce crisis risks.Originality/valueThis paper is one of the first to explore changes in consumer behavior caused by the spread of the coronavirus. It provides a coherent and comprehensive understanding of how consumer behavior changes under fear-crisis conditions along with future research directions.