By Brooke Donnelly
Commercial sustainability aims to achieve the balance between economic, environmental and social impacts through the effective management of resources whilst maximising organisational profitability.
Strategy should not exist at the extremes of the sustainability tangent. Business must position itself at the centre of the bell curve, moving too far right or left will fail to satisfy the totality of the three elements of the triple bottom line.
Sustainability is at its core the desire to ensure the longevity of the planet and in turn the quality of our human existence, as such we all have an innate interest in its outcome. The key is to identify the relevance of those desires within a commercial context. To ensure the strategic intent is a value added proposition to both the organisation and the individual.
As a model of equality, driving the concept so deeply green that it is devoid of a corresponding economic benefit is to neglect the intrinsic nature of sustainability. An integrated strategy must encompass continual improvement and innovation that provides a focus on the commercial proposition of all activities.
A triple bottom line must maintain the equilibrium of economic, social and environmental impacts. To seek to achieve one at the detriment of another is to fall short in achieving this essential balance.
Business requires a paradigm shift towards the concept of resources. A comprehensive understanding must include a range of internal and external stakeholders aligned with natural and economic resources. Organisations have a responsibility to return profits to shareholders.
Profit is not a dirty word; rather it is an essential resource in delivering a balanced triple bottom line.
Strong and vibrant organisations that encompass a sustainability vision drive innovation.
Developing projects with a view to the bottom line in partner with the environmental and social impacts fosters dynamic and flexible organisational cultures.
The greatest impact for a sustainable future will not be driven by government policy, rather by commerce. History has proven the influence of free markets and the capitalist structure can redefine the negative societal and environmental activities of whole economic regions.
Organisations with a focus on strategic commercial sustainability will usher in a new era of commerce that will bring the essential generational change that will define business strategy in the twenty first century.
