Sustainable Business: People, Profits, and Planet

This article discusses the concept of sustainable business and the triple bottom line approach to evaluate the income generated economically, socially, and environmentally. It explores how businesses can promote a good working environment for employees and goodwill from the community. The article also covers the different types of capital in a business and the phases of a business approach to sustainability. Several examples of businesses successfully engaging in sustainable practices are also provided.

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Sustainable Business
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Sustainable Business
We are living in a competitive world of business and therefore, companies have to adjust
their way of operations to continue in existence. Managing the financial, environmental and
social risk and responsibilities are what entails business sustainability. The sustainability of
business involves three factors including people, profits, and the planet. One of the major
structures adopted by the contemporary businesses is the triple bottom line structure which is
meant to evaluate the income generated (Martinez-Alier et al., 2014). This technique requires
one to evaluate the profits that one’s business generates economically, socially as well as
environmentally other than concentrating on the old way of focusing on profits only. The triple
bottom line is a good way to evaluate the profit made and the sustainability of your business.
Social sustainability measures how the business income influences human capital. It
helps to understand how the business provides benefits to the city either through supporting local
activities or community health. The employees of the business should also be well informed in
terms of financial stability and health issues. The social bottom line helps to promote a good
working environment for the employees as well as goodwill from the community at large. Where
the business is not cultivating good relations with the community, the customers, and its
employees, it starts shrinking. The social bottom line assesses the long-term sustainability of the
business (Ortiz & Bansal, 2016). The social bottom line structure states that the corporate and
labor interests are interdependent. With a desirable workplace, employees under social bottom-
line structure will make every effort to be part of the business.
Environmental sustainability means observing, controlling and reporting to the
responsible authorities about business depletions, wastes, and the discharges. The business
environmental resources may include the water sources used, gases and renewable energy. If the

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business is less involved with negative environmental issues, it has a longer sustainability period.
The business ought to establish a sustainability committee meant to enable a smooth flow of the
business and intervening for viable solutions whenever sustainability issues arise. Such solution
should include recycling of the waste products to reduce pollution.
Measuring economic sustainability should entail checking the impact of the business on
the suppliers, employees and the community as a whole (Boons et al., 2013). A business that
focusses on empowering the economy is the one that will continue to excel in the future.
Business owners should evaluate whether the business promotes the local supplier for him to stay
in the market if it embraces innovation if employees are getting better salaries and if the
materials used are economically acceptable. By practicing the triple bottom line method, the
business is able to recognize its current place in the economy and understand its ability to be a
going concern (Savitz, 2013). However, none of the bottom lines can sustain a business on its
own.
There are several kinds of capital in a business. The most common form of capital is
finance. Finance may take the form of a debt or equity. Finance plays a vital role in the
operations of a business by meeting all financial obligations that are required. Sometimes
businesses acquire loans to fund their operations whenever they are financially constrained. be.
Skills, knowledge, health and experience are what comprises of human capital (Robb &
Robinson, 2014). Employees are the most important and incorporated assets of a business. High
costs are involved in hiring, placement, training as well as resigning of the workers. The period
during which new employees have to adapt to their job can have some effect to the production

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and growth of the business. No business tends to enjoy the high levels of job turnover. This is
because working with experienced and well-known employees is easier, productive and efficient.
Intellectual capital includes the intangible assets such as patents, trademarks and the
equity of the brand (Stam Arzlanian & Elfring, 2014). The net worth of intellectual capital
contributes to the sustainability of a business. Concept and tactics established through the
intellectual capital give a valued perception into the operations of a business. Social and
relationship capital comprises of groups, systems, and individuals who are united for a common
goal. Undisputed example of social relational capital is the development and promotion of
interactions with universities, philosophers and other bases of intellectual capital. The natural
resources and ecosystems like climate make up the natural capital. Natural capital is mainly
utilized by the extractive companies. However, that does not mean that it is not useful to other
organizations. Manufactured capital includes goods, services delivery, and the supply networks.
Manufactured capital is a key driver of the perpetual existence of every business.
The phases of a business approach to sustainability are rejection, compliance, the
sustaining corporation, efficiency, strategic proactivity and non-responsiveness (Willard, 2012).
When the organization exploits the resources of the company, including the employees for
economic gain, it results in the rejection of social practices. Non-responsiveness occurs when a
firm concentrates on the daily chores while ignoring its future sustainability. Compliance lessens
the risk of approval for not attaining the set standards. Efficiency revolves around creating
awareness to the managers on the benefits of adopting and implementing the sustainability
methods. Strategic proactivity occurs once sustainability is undertaken to get hold of additional
opportunities. The sustaining corporation reveals an adoption of sustainability and contributes to
fair, reasonable and independent community practices.

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Businesses have been seen to be successfully engaging in the sustainable practices in the
current world of business (Wiek, Withycombe & Redman, 2011). Such may include the Pepsi –
Which is a food and Beverage Company. It has been revealed that changes in climatic
conditions, water shortage, and public well-being are an imminent challenge to business
sustainability. General electric via its human resource section is incorporating sustainability into
the company’s values. Nike is a sports gear international that take part in sustainable designs
through its product collection, as designers are able to come up with acceptable cloths in the
market. The business managers have to face the task of performing their duties with honesty,
standing with bravery towards a healthy society that will practice sustainable methods while
truncating along a sustainable world.

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References
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Robb, A. M., & Robinson, D. T. (2014). The capital structure decisions of new firms. The
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Savitz, A. (2013). The triple bottom line: how today's best-run companies are achieving
economic, social and environmental success-and how you can too. John Wiley & Sons.
Stam, W., Arzlanian, S., & Elfring, T. (2014). The social capital of entrepreneurs and small firm
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Wiek, A., Withycombe, L., & Redman, C. L. (2011). Key competencies in sustainability: a
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Willard, B. (2012). The new sustainability advantage: seven business case benefits from a triple
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