From compliance to strategy: a materiality maturity framework for sustainability management in higher education

Purpose This paper aims to analyze why sustainability materiality in Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) often remains symbolic, a symptom of failed institutionalization and decoupling, and propose a maturity framework that transforms materiality into a strategic management tool aligned with the academic mission and sustainable development. Design/methodology/approach Grounded in Institutional Theory and Design Science Research (DSR), this study develops a prescriptive artifact for this problem. Following the DSR process, it identifies implementation and mission gaps through a literature review, designs the Higher Education–Strategic Materiality Maturity Framework (HE-SMMF) and demonstrates its internal logic through a hypothetical scenario. Findings The paper presents the HE-SMMF, structuring institutionalization across five maturity levels and four process areas (governance, dialogue, analysis and integration). The framework enables strategic recoupling, helping HEIs move beyond the “empty shell” of symbolic reporting by integrating sustainability into teaching and research. Research limitations/implications The framework’s feasibility is illustrated through an invented scenario rather than empirical fieldwork; validation across differing institutions is needed. Practical implications The framework offers university leaders a diagnostic tool and prescriptive roadmap to overcome compliance paralysis, transforming sustainability reporting into a strategic activity that informs decision-making. Social implications By fostering authentic accountability, the framework strengthens the social contract between universities and society, helping HEIs direct their intellectual resources toward the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Originality/value This study contributes the first materiality maturity model tailored to the governance of HEIs, bridging organizational theory and practice through a novel, procedural approach to substantive accountability.