Corporate sustainability is an approach aiming to create long-term stakeholder value through the implementation of a business strategy that focuses on the ethical, social, environmental, cultural, and economic dimensions of doing business. The strategies created are intended to foster longevity, transparency, and proper employee development within business organizations. Firms will often express their commitment to corporate sustainability through a statement of Corporate Sustainability Standards (CSS), which are usually policies and measures that aim to meet, or exceed, minimum regulatory requirements. Corporate sustainability is often confused with

corporate social responsibility Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is a form of international private business self-regulation which aims to contribute to societal goals of a philanthropic, activist, or charitable nature by engaging in or supporting volunteering or ethicall ...

(CSR), though the two are not the same. Bansal and DesJardine (2014) state that the notion of ‘time’ discriminates sustainability from CSR and other similar concepts. Whereas ethics, morality, and norms permeate CSR, sustainability only obliges businesses to make intertemporal trade-offs to safeguard intergenerational equity. Short-termism is the bane of sustainability.

Origin

The phrase is derived from the concept of "

sustainable development Sustainable development is an organizing principle for meeting human development goals while also sustaining the ability of natural systems to provide the natural resources and ecosystem services on which the economy and society depend. The ...

" and Elkington's (1997) "

triple bottom line The triple bottom line (or otherwise noted as TBL or 3BL) is an accounting framework with three parts: social, environmental (or ecological) and economic. Some organizations have adopted the TBL framework to evaluate their performance in a broader ...

." The

Brundtland Commission The Brundtland Commission, formerly the World Commission on Environment and Development, was a sub-organization of the United Nations (UN) that aimed to unite countries in pursuit of sustainable development. It was founded in 1983 when Javier Pé ...

's Report, ''

Our Common Future __NOTOC__ ''Our Common Future'', also known as the Brundtland Report, was published on October 1987 by the United Nations through the Oxford University Press. This publication was in recognition of Gro Harlem Brundtland's, former Norwegian Prime M ...

'', described sustainable development as, "development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs." This desire to grow without damaging future generations' prospects gradually became central to business philosophies. "Triple bottom line" proposes that business goals were inseparable from the societies and environments within which they operate. While short-term economic gains could be pursued, failure to account the social and environmental impacts of these pursuits is believed to make those business practices unsustainable. Measuring corporate sustainability is possible through composite indicators that cover environmental, social,

corporate governance Corporate governance is defined, described or delineated in diverse ways, depending on the writer's purpose. Writers focused on a disciplinary interest or context (such as accounting, finance, law, or management) often adopt narrow definitions ...

and economic measures. One way of assessing corporate sustainability is through the ''Complex Performance Indicator'' (CPI).

Scope

The most broadly accepted criterion for corporate sustainability constitutes a firm's efficient use of

natural capital Natural capital is the world's stock of natural resources, which includes geology, soils, air, water and all living organisms. Some natural capital assets provide people with free goods and services, often called ecosystem services. All of t ...

. This eco-efficiency is usually calculated as the economic value added by a firm in relation to its aggregated ecological impact. Similar to the eco-efficiency concept but so far less explored is the second criterion for corporate sustainability. Socio-efficiency describes the relation between a firm's value added and its social impact. Whereas, it can be assumed that most corporate impacts on the environment are negative (apart from rare exceptions such as the planting of trees) this is not true for social impacts. These can be either positive (e.g. corporate giving, creation of employment) or negative (e.g. work accidents, human rights abuses). Both eco-efficiency and socio-efficiency are concerned primarily with increasing economic sustainability. In this process they instrumentalise both natural and social capital aiming to benefit from win-win situations. Some point towards eco-effectiveness, socio-effectiveness, sufficiency, and eco-equity as four criteria that need to be met if sustainable development is to be reached. Theorists agree that respect for issues other than economics is an important matter. The Business Case for Sustainability (BCS) has had many different approaches for ways to approve or disapprove the economic rationale for corporate sustainability management.

Principles for corporate sustainability

; Transparency: proposes that by having an engaging environment within a company and within the community it operates will improve performance and increase profits. This can be attained through open communications with stakeholders characterized by high levels of information disclosure, clarity, and accuracy. ; Stakeholder engagement: is attained when a company educates its employees and outside stakeholders (customers, suppliers, and the entire community) and move them to act on matters such as waste reduction or energy efficiency. ; Thinking ahead: Envisioning the future enables companies to generate fresh ideas for implementation. These ideas can either reduce productions costs, increase profits, or provide a better image for the organization. ;Increasing the number of women board members: A a 2012 study by the University of California Berkeley’s

Haas School of Business The Walter A. Haas School of Business, also known as Berkeley Haas, is the business school of the University of California, Berkeley, a public research university in Berkeley, California. It was the first business school at a public universit ...

found that companies with a high number of female board members were more likely to reduce their environmental impact and improve energy efficiency.

References

Sources

* * * * * Werbach, Adam. Strategy for Sustainability: a Business Manifesto. Boston, Mass.: Harvard Business, 2009. Print.
"Strengthen Your Business by Developing Your Employees", by Leslie Levine—Business Resources, Advice and Forms for Large and Small Businesses, 2010

"Walmart Sustainability Report 2010 - Environment - Waste." Walmartstores.com.
Web. 1 July 2010.
"Handbook on Corporate Social Responsibility in India", Sachin Shukla et al - PwC India, 2013.

External links

International Society of Sustainability Professionals
- Non-profit association supporting sustainability professionals {{DEFAULTSORT:Corporate Sustainability