Introduction To Sustainability Inc.

This blog will survey the Corporation's sustainability role in modern society. Looking at where Corporations Social Responsibility (CSR) came from and how it is evolving to stay in touch with a more complex and inter- connected society. Where the consumer is now interested not only in the price and quality of a product, but how the Corporation operates both ethically and environmentally, as a type of corporate citizen. 

CSR was born out of Corporate Governance in the 1960's and 70's, where companies implemented policies and structures to ensure that they operated in compliance with the law, ethically and within international norms. Originally, it was concerned with keeping in check how executive managers operated, looking after the interests of "stakeholders", i.e. employees and investors (shareholders). Then, in 1984 with the publishing of an influential book Strategic management: a stakeholder approach, by R. Edward Freeman, 'stakeholders also included the external, i.e. customers, the environment and communities and any other in the public sphere that come into contact with the Corporation, thus giving rise to modern understanding of Corporate Social Responsibility.  It is a guide that Corporations can follow, to illustrate to their customers what they are willing to uphold. 

CSR certainly has its critics, with some stating that it can have a detrimental effect on the profits of the Corporation and detracts from the economics role of business. Others state that it is simply window dressing to pre-empt any government regulation that may come in and finally, that it is simply PR to make a company seem 'in-touch'. 

This is a very simplified overview of history and development of Corporate Social Responsibility and it is not my aim to look backwards adn diver into this further. My aim with this blog is to unpack with the aid of examples of best practise from corporations and academics how CSR will evolve in the future, what it will encompass and illustrating this with examples of what some forward thinking companies are doing now. Also, I will be looking at incidences that have occurred that highlight why CSR  is now good business.  But, first a little about myself, I have spent a number of years working for the UK Government on Sustainability and I have an Undergraduate Degree in Planning with a specialisation in Environmental Planning, I also have a Master’s Degree in International Politics and I have recently completed an MBA, which saw me studying across 3 continents, the UK, China and the USA where my specialisation was Development Economics, Innovation and Strategy. 

My previous work experience and qualification should help to clarify that I am not looking at CSR from the perspective of an 'Eco Warrior or Tree Hugger', no offense intended. But, rather I intend to explain how CSR is evolving into what I would call 'Sustainable Business Practice'. That encompasses the innovation of the Corporations business model to generate more revenues; it views assets such as buildings and computers to name but two, from a new perspective that can also impact the bottom line. It should also include an understanding of, and incorporation of government policy, politics and culture, particularly in light of the emerging markets cross the the globe. Finally an understanding of technology and the advancements being made in sustainable technologies will be essential in this new business structure. 

Effectively, it will become a new holistic and strategic way of doing business in the 21st Century, where Business will measure their performance across the 'Triple Bottom line': People, Profit, Planet, which is something that is now coming into existence. What is needed though is an education that this is a viable and revenue generating way to do business and not some crazy marketeers branding project, but that is another story!