Corporate sustainability

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. Corporate sustainability is often confused with corporate social responsibility (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. The phrase is derived from the concept of 'sustainable development' and the 'triple bottom line.' The Brundtland Commission's Report, Our Common Future, 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. Within academic management circles, Elkington (1997) developed the concept of the Triple Bottom Line which 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 and economic measures. One way of assessing corporate sustainability is through the Complex Performance Indicator (CPI). This concept 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.