ABSTRACT
The processes of liberalisation and globalisation have brought about significant changes affecting the activities of companies. Global competition has increased pressures on social concerns and environmental protection. Against this background the retention of state autonomy and power is harmful for environmental protection and sustainability. Therefore governance deficits can be witnessed that need to be addressed with new measures. The inside-out perspective includes measures that are taken under the umbrella of CSR, corporate citizenship or corporate accountability. Voluntary initiatives might be targeted at the negotiation, co-ordination or implementation stages of sustainability targets. Voluntary initiatives might be practised by a single firm as well as by associations of companies. The model of Kolk offers us an opportunity to construct a link between strategic management of corporations, society and the problem of governance of voluntary initiatives.
