Traditional business models aim to create value for shareholders, often at the expense of other stakeholders. Drawing from our own research and our colleagues research in this area, we have created a sustainability business case for the 21 st century corporate executive. It can be an important part of an overall business strategy. Sustainability at penn state sustainability planning guidebook for teams draft version 2014. There have been a number of studies looking at the relation between companies environmental, social, and corporate governance practices esg and their financial performance. A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the honors in the major program in management entrepreneurship in the college of business administration and the burnett honors college at the university of central florida orlando, florida summer term, 2016. Sustainability plans these cases are dependent on in achieving sufficient volumes of employers customers to make the products. As the receiver of these materials you are granted a limited license to use display or print the materials, provided the materials are not modified. The business case for corporate sustainability literature.
The sustainability business case harvard university. The beginning presents the problemsolution with evidence and the end is the call to action, where you shift responsibility to the donors shoulders. Pdf the business case for environmental sustainability. Development goals sdgs in 2015 now guide the worlds approach to sustainable development. A guide to leading practice sustainable development in mining v. Business case for 14a8 the forum for sustainable and. Business case and sustainability assessment for each of the schemes under consideration to provide consultees with a consistent assessment of each of the shortlisted schemes. While task force members are passionate about sustainability, the bottom line is that sustainability is good governance. This is a difficult question to answer precisely, largely because there is no generally accepted definition of the term sustainability.
Beyond the business case for corporate sustainability. The business case for supply chain sustainability the business case for supply chain sustainability for a particular company depends on a variety of issues including industry sector, region of operation, stakeholder expectations, business strategy, organizational culture, and past performance. None of the materials may be otherwise reproduced, republished, redisseminated or otherwise provided in any manner or form without the. All books are in clear copy here, and all files are secure so dont worry about it. The business case for corporate social responsibility. Business case of sustainability the world bank governance design inclusion 10 principles for sustainable.
Since the end of the 1990s, corporate sustainability has become a growing interest theme in business and academia. Click to view the latest business law today january 2015. For sustainability to remain a relevant, useful tool, it is important that it adapt to the local context. The business case for sustainability professionals in the workplace julia ruedig masters candidate university of michigan erb institute of global sustainable enterprise anisa baldwin metzger, assoc. The company will be in the business of importexport products and will. Ualbertas sustainability plan sustainability at the university of alberta the definition of sustainability is broad, and the world is a big, diverse places. Sustainability is a multidimensional subject that involves a diverse range of operational processes and it is argued that a greater portion of sustainability resources. The model itself will be made available as an ms excel file as an accompaniment to this. Hoping to alleviate their concerns, this article also provides concrete examples of how sustainability benefits the bottom line. Realising the sustainable development goals will improve the environment for doing business and building markets. This paper also contains case of a company which is the actual idea for doing business of the author. There have been a number of studies looking at the relation between companies environmental, social, and corporate governance practices esg and their. In the case of learning about sustainable business practice, managers often quickly learn enough to be interested in it, but then the learning curve is high steep, and there is a lot to learn to ensure that the sustainable practice serves the interests of the business entity. A further search tern used was sustainability and corporate social responsibility.
Business case analysis traditionally works with two sets of indicatorssustainability actions on the input side and indicators of financial performance on the output sideto prove causality or a positive correlation. Ill offer many more videos about the business case in the days ahead, and also videos on making sustainability relevant for the business community. Process efficiency and sustainability case studies mass. Making the business case for environmental sustainability working. World business council for sustainable development corporate social responsibility the world business council for sustainable development has sought to be at the forefront of the business response to the sustainable development challenge since 1992. Request pdf managing the business case for sustainability this introduction provides an overview of the subject of this book, namely how to manage the. We attribute this primarily to lack of descriptive research in these areas. At the same time, the demands of a new generation of employees for meaning in their work, the declining levels of trust in companies. Beyond the business case for corporate sustainability thomas dyllick1 and kai hockerts2 1 university of st.
Business and the united nations sustainable development goals fund in partnership with. Although it is difficult to measure many of the intangible benefits, business relevant metrics can be highly effective in garnering momentum and support across the organization. Here i begin to explore the issue by focusing on a more limited question, namely whether a business case be made for acting in an environmentally sustainable way, which i define as acting in any way that reduce a firms environmental footprint. Whether managing downside risk, creating business value by incorporating sustainable solutions, or identifying innovative ways to finance sustainability, the private sector is becoming the engine of competitive solutions to sustainability and can help finance and address sustainability challenges in the years ahead. This matrix has been adapted from previous work by sustainability, buried treasure,2 which examined the business case for sustainability in developed countries. These case studies are followed by two implementation guides, one for ce and another for the sdgs. Unpacking the business case for sustainability s u m a s. A useful business case would lead those exposed to it to say, yes, that seems like a good business idea and the preponderance of evidence confirms it. This is the table of contents for the book sustainable business cases. Understanding of the critical indicators that organizations should focus on has evolved considerably. Search terms included both business sustainability and organizational sustainability. The business case for purpose 1 businesses face an accelerated pace of change as digitalization, disruptive business, and rapidly changing consumer expectations reshape their world. This is in line with the findings by harvard business school that reporting on material issues is associated with increases in firm value. Wwf believes there is a strong business case for retailers to adopt responsible sourcing of forest products.
Ten years to deliver the paris agreement by globescan and sustainability, show that experts see the coming decade as crucial for. See the license for more details, but that basically means you can share this book as long as you credit the author but see below, dont make money from it, and do make it available to everyone else under the same terms. Many businesses are stuck in the mindset of optimising shortterm financial performance, whilst. A business case for sustainability, or what scholars in business ethics often call enlightened selfinterest, is mostly described as a situation where economic success is increased while performing well in social and environmental issues. This study documents more than 240 real life examples from over 60 emerging markets. Gallen, switzerland 2 insead, fontainebleau, france the article is intended as a contribution to the ongoing conceptual development of corporate sustainability. Business case and sustainability assessment for each of the shortlisted schemes. World business council for the wbcsd is a genevabased business association with a membership of sustainable development some180 international companies from 35 countries, covering more than wbcsd 20 industrial sectors. Summary sustainability and business performance are related, and they both have a positive impact on each other, according to this survey of nearly 900. This book is licensed under a creative commons byncsa 3.
Kowszyk, yanina ac case studies on circular economy. Pdf a considerable body of literature deals with the creation of economic value while increasing corporate environmental and social. Using a business case analysis can help them select different approaches or alternatives on how the flow of the project or program will go. Top 40 most popular case studies of 2017 in compiling the list, we gave additional weight to usage outside yale. In the article the comprehensive business case for sustainability, published by the harvard. The need for sustainable aquaculture is no longer a question, but an important part of future global food systems. The global survey of senior executives from around the world conducted by the economist in 2011 found that 76 percent of respondents think that embedding sustainability into the companys business leads to enhanced reputation and increased brand value.
Jul 11, 2011 the business case 2 risk mitigation the business case for sustainability 25. A business case analysis is used as a decisionmaking guide, not only for the stakeholders but also to the project managers and their project team. Most organizations can be placed somewhere in between. Case topics represented on the list vary widely, but a number are drawn from the case teams focus on healthcare, asset management, and sustainability. The business of sustainability many companies are actively integrating sustainability principles into their businesses, according to a recent mckinsey survey,1 and they are doing so by pursuing goals that go far beyond earlier concern for reputation managementfor example, saving energy, developing green products, and retaining and.
Sustainability making our future the cause of the present. Oct 21, 2016 drawing from our own research and our colleagues research in this area, we have created a sustainability business case for the 21 st century corporate executive. Corporate social responsibility and sustainable business. The existence of a business case for sustainability is, however, mostly seen as an adhoc measure, a supplement to the core business, or simply a coincidence. In november 2014 a business case and sustainability assessment was prepared and published for each of the three schemes under consideration, along with the consultation report and a suite of detailed background reports. The sustainable business case book table of contents. The sustainability business case for the 21st century. A guide to leading practice sustainable development in mining. Sustainable business cases 2012 book archive lardbucket. Section 1, the business case for sustainable procurement, provides a threepage business case covering key elements such as benefits, drivers, barriers and implementation principles. The business case is not a generic argument that corporate sustainability strategies are the right choice for all companies in all situations, but rather something that must be carefully honed to the specific circumstances of individual companies operating in unique positions within distinct industries.
Apr 09, 2012 an investment in sustainabilitypeople, planet and prosperityis not only a form of corporate philanthropy, but is also core to how a company can succeed and prosper as a business. The business case for the current sec shareholder proposal process. The business case for sustainability is evolving sustainability used to be at arms length from core business decisions and seen as additional it was often used to manage areas like brand or direct environmental impacts. The business case for sustainability results direct. From increasing demand for natural resources to economic disparity to climate change, companies are facing a more complex array of trade offs and risks across. World business council for sustainable development. You must be wondering what a business case is all about.
Mercer island is a small community that by size alone cant have a huge impact on global. The latter was included in order to include articles on sustainability in the public sector, but the results were in fact limited in this area. The business case 2 risk mitigation the business case for sustainability 27. A strategic approach to sustainable business practice. As a contrast, this paper argues that business model innovations may be required to support a systematic, ongoing creation of business cases for sustainability. To remain competitive companies must become carbon neutral within a decade. Well, technically, a business case is a lot like a business plan. The business case for environmental and sustainability employee education national environmental education foundation 2 while our primary focus is on environmental education, some companies include the environment as part of a broader sustainability or corporate social responsibility agenda. Before you actually start working on the project, you need to have a case template ready with you. This document aims to help sustainable procurement champions be better at making the case for sustainable procurement within their organisations. The business case for sustainability is also connected to improved reputation and brand value. The wbcsd is a coalition of 120 international companies united by a shared commitment to the. The functioned print feature is printing the swf pages but not the real pdf pages, in this case it is suggested to download the pdf instead of printing swf pages so that you can get the best layout from original pdf.
The business of sustainability 5 executive summary t here is a strong consensus that sustainability is havingand will continue to havea material impact on how companies think and act. Corporate responsibility or sustainability is therefore a prominent feature of the business and society literature, addressing topics of business ethics. This business case will lay out the rationale for the integration of green, sustainable best practices in the or, and will demonstrate how or departments at leading hospitals are beginning a new dialogue with sustainability leaders, the supply chain and service providers about how to create collaborative solu. Ceres is a sustainability nonprofit organization working with the most influential investors and companies to build leadership and drive solutions throughout the economy. He had to make the business case for sustainabilitydriven actions and the case for trying to build sap into a sustainability role model to saps own board of directors.
Managing the business case for sustainability request pdf. Ninetytwo percent of survey respondents said that their company was addressing sustainability in some way. To support the recommendations in its final report, the commission has prepared a single overarching business case and sustainability assessment which focuses. The business case for environmental and sustainability. Thank you for using the download pdf file feature, to. The commitment of business to contribute to sustainable economic development working with employees, their families, the local community and society at large to improve their quality of life. Your case, like a story, should have a beginning, middle, and end. The business case 2 risk mitigation the business case for sustainability 26. Business case studies in sustainability practices by sheri l.
Making the business case for environmental sustainability. The business case for precompetitive collaboration is a case for change at scale that would not be possible for individual companies, and which would take the market far longer to achieve without collaboration. In 2010, the academic advisory committee for the office of sustainability. The business case for sustainability and economic success 5 businesses in general, it is not the goal of a business case for sustainability to solve any social problem, but to contribute to solving which relate to the core business of the. The business benefits of using sustainability standards. The business for 2030 initiative highlights that the scale and ambition of the 2030 development agenda creates a tremendous opportunity for the private sector to demonstrate the central role it plays in sustainable development and human prosperity and to serve as an essential partner to bridging the. The business case for sustainability evidence that tourism businesses in protected areas perform best when they also implement sustainability actions e europarc federation, september 2011. According to ifcs 2007 report banking on sustainability, which included a survey of 120 financial institutions in 43 emerging markets, the integration of sustainability into management systems and practices brings tangible benefits, including new lines of business, new clients, greater access to financing, greater shareholder value, and improved reputation and goodwill. The center for sustainable business has identified a comprehensive list of benefits driving positive financial performance that we believe result from embedding sustainability into the core business strategy. Top 40 most popular case studies of 2017 yale school of. Introduction to sustainable business and sustainable business.
Business case studies in sustainability practices pdf book. For most, the concept remains abstract and theoretical. One way of understanding what a suitable business case might entail is to compare the case for corporate sustainability to another significant trend in corporate practice. The numbers weve discussed are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes the business case for sustainability. In the last ten years, the notion of a business case for corporate sustainability has increasingly been used by the corporate sector, environmental organi. For instance, lets say that you have been assigned a particular project at your office or business. At the business level sustainability is often equated with ecoef. Grafs second, and bigger, task was to grapple with internal corporate strategy. The business case for sustainability on behalf of cpa australia and the macquarie international governance and performance research centre igap, i would like to invite you to attend a roundtable discussion with professor stefan schaltegger to address the topic the business case for sustainability. Develop the business plan and undertake market analysis. Finding the business case for sustainability guardian. Download business case studies in sustainability practices book pdf free download link or read online here in pdf. Making the business case for environmental sustainability rebecca henderson, harvard business school september 30, 2014 can a business case be made for acting sustainably. Business cases for sustainability and the role of business.