Alibaba Group: Sustainability, Business Model, and Practices Analysis

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of Alibaba Group's sustainability practices, business model, and strategic initiatives. It begins with an introduction to Alibaba Group, its mission, and its commitment to sustainability, emphasizing its role in transforming business through technology and its contributions to charitable and social projects, including the UN World Food Programme (WFP). The report then explores the concept of sustainability in the modern business context, highlighting its importance in balancing economic development, social responsibility, and environmental protection. It examines Alibaba's specific sustainability efforts, including its focus on social, environmental, and financial outcomes, its strategic intent to support SMEs, and its characteristics of sustainability such as outward-looking approach, stakeholder engagement, innovation, qualified employees, and long-term vision. The report also details Alibaba's ESG priorities, corporate governance structure, intellectual property rights protection, cybersecurity measures, and data protection policies. It discusses how Alibaba aims to solve societal problems, manage risks and opportunities, and achieve its business goals while considering environmental, social, and governance factors. The report concludes by emphasizing Alibaba's commitment to its stakeholders, its proactive approach to addressing issues, and its efforts to maintain a sustainable and healthy business performance in the online marketplace. The report is based on the ESG Report 2018 and other relevant sources.

Running Head: SUSTAINABILITY 0
Sustainability
Alibaba Group
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Introduction
Alibaba Group was integrated in 1999 by Jack Ma that is a holding company in China
as an online commerce having businesses and millions of users. The availability of online
shopping market offers products and services, and technology across the globe. Further, the
services provided by the company are cloud computing, media and mobile entertainment, and
other services related to innovation advantages. Alibaba’s mission is to transform the
business by selling, improving and operating competencies while providing marketing reach
and technology structure to help dealers, brands and new technology for upgrading in relation
to operations and customers (Kim, 2018). The framing of business model by Alibaba is to be
responsible socially for supporting and participating in projects that to charitable and socially
among their core values and mission.
This executes the charitable environment while focusing on technology for the
company’s profits expansion through the abilities of technology. It is for helping instantly to
achieve the zero hunger goals under the “UN World Food Programme (WFP)” across the
globe using Alibaba’s technology. In China, Alibaba provides support to rural development,
job opportunities, contribution in environmental sustainability, execution of poverty relief
related programs, and providing services and contributions to charitable public. UN WFP and
Alibaba Group support the efforts by merging to achieve “SDG (Sustainable Development
Goal)” globally for zero hunger helping to attain the protection of environment (Alibaba
Group, 2014). In this report, the characteristics of sustainability are covered in relation to the
company Alibaba Group with analysis of approaches related to sustainability as commenced
by the company.
Sustainability
In today’s business world, it is essential to have knowledge about the society covering
social learning, technology and environment. Sustainability is discovering future in relation
to technology development and carbon emissions reduction covering social, political and
economic factors. These factors provide awareness based on new legislation and job
opportunities for options in growth. It consists of protecting environment, renewable fuel
sources, and the planet balancing with the innovation to human health. Moreover, it is
essential when improvements are made in urban and rural areas with technology and

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economic changes asking for protection and needs while competing (Rahdari, Sepasi, &
Moradi, 2016). The development to fulfil the needs helps in making decision for future where
sustainability is crucial for the issues related to economic development.
In business, those are legal requirements and incentives, employment, and extensions
and jobs. Further in developing countries, economic development offers to fulfil the needs of
people by enhancing the living standard while compromising quality and to reduce the
burden financially. The people are required to be aware and protected legally for not making
the business harm essential in relation to pollution and other activities. Moreover, proper
checking and programs related to legislation is done in developed countries to take care of
individuals’ heath and wealth while protecting without compromising the living standard’s
quality in case of social development. Nowadays, the major concern is to building and
housing sustainably by having better homes with sustainability (Howes, et al., 2017). It is
possible by providing individuals the education they need and encouraging for being the part
of the environment and protecting them while teaching about environment to achieve the
goals among UN. The protection of environment is crucial to reduce the power consumption,
pollution by not using vehicles, and to recycle.
Further, the structure of businesses are established to keep discharging of carbon low
and pollution minimization by installing sources related to renewable power at industries and
homes. It is necessary to protect the environment to save the air quality, ecosystems,
reliability and resources sustainability, and stress elimination for future. So, the execution of
innovative technology is for making development in future greener and saving the same from
the possibility of damages. The achievement of goals is important for sustainable
development that helps in working towards poverty reduction at universal level (Chitescu &
Lixandru, 2016). Also, economic growth, better education and health, gender equality is
required to achieve for providing growth by strong economy and job opportunities with living
standard improvisation and handling of climate change while helping overall planet. The
universal problems are helped through sustainability by solving environment’s management
and consumption. The sustainability goals are provided by Alibaba by executing projects
related to charity while making technology as a focus point. Moreover, it is helpful in
removing the future obstacles related to trade to provide contribution and benefits to
economic and social development with environmental practices positively (Beesley, 2016).

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Sustainability of Alibaba
Sustainability is for social, environmental and financial outcomes that help in making
decision and balancing for long and short terms. The company’s responsibility is to make
decisions and take actions for the interest of stakeholders and welfare to the society. Further,
the business practices of Alibaba Group consists of responsibilities related to social,
environment and economic for the issues and changes improved by shareholders, media
related issues, and the pressure of government. It is possible by attaining customers’ alliance,
competitive advantage, non-regulatory effective company, and globalization (Zeng, 2018).
The main objective of the company is achieving growth with providing sustainability
accessibility to social responsibility investment, online marketplace and system expansion of
distribution for describing overall profit through social responsibility of the company.
Alibaba faced several challenges as well that influence the conduct of employees,
inequality between urban and rural, impacts of offline retail, under China governance
compliance with laws being unclear, manufacturing and distribution infrastructure, one-trade
focus, and safety through “Alibaba Intellectual Property Protection Platform”. The
improvements are needed by removing implications related to cost, business profits being
unproven, and without high importance to the company (Matthews, 2018). Majorly, the focus
is on business goals, issues reduction by development and positive public relations for
increase in better performance and cost reduction of workforce maintenance and equity
funds. Alibaba’s strategic intent established to help SMEs (small and medium-size
enterprises) through covering and financing dependency, training, and technology on
advertising profits.
Characteristics of Sustainability
The company requires being concerned about the good in economy for sustainability
and that shows some concentrated characteristics in the organisations required and not as a
business practice generally. The identification of the characteristics was by (Suzanne,
Melissa, & Tim , 2018).
1. In the market, the outward-looking of the companies work with sustainability settling
by making them according to the situation. The company’s interaction and
stakeholder’s impact for identifying best practices are adopted. There is a need to
communicate within the company’s stakeholders and environmental scanning attained

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continuously according to learning positioned in an organisation. The problems
related to economic, social and environmental impact the sustainability of the
company and checking contribution of improvements to environmental operations.
2. It is important for the company to be flexible and innovative for social, economic and
environment challenges balance for achieving business not only based on policy terms
that is difficult. Also, needs innovation in the company as a whole with constant
change required to manage processes, people and products. It is done for groups and
customers involvement to restructure through new thinking and creativity with new
ideas (Carley & Christie, 2017).
3. There is a requirement of qualified employees and experts in the company for
attaining sustainability even if the challenges are faced to pollution risks minimization
and gaining opportunities. The problems are required to deal with for the company’s
performance and profitability maintenance among continuous development and
knowledge through programs by mentors and trainers for new employees recruitment
and opportunities creation while knowledge sharing.
4. It is essential for the company to think about innovation considering sustainability as
the main standard. Further, there is a need of systems enhancement instead of
approaching problems processes without being concern related to paralysis or
confusion, and disorder of the company regarding sustainability. The achievement of
particular goal by the company not requires being sustainable but finding the right
path is important while looking at the objectives. Further, there is need of high
performance and no low base for making improvements in flexibility, quality,
operations and costs easily without making any compromises. The additional
investments are attained to remove the restrictions to make choices accordingly
(Salas-Zapata, Ríos-Osorio, & Cardona-Arias, 2017). At all the levels, the company
need working to clear the issues while achieving sustainability with legal structures,
and groups, customers, and employees security.
5. There is a need for real aspirations to make decisions and being responsible about
right ones approving responsibilities and values within the company. The employees’
protection is crucial including their consumers, groups and environment dignity. The
short-term benefit is relied on efficient use justified from the aspects of resources for
sustainability. Other than this in short-term, economic gains are also required to stop
pollution and security costs. However, long-term companies are the aspect of
investments in actual.

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6. In the long-term, sustainability is when they are prepared to face the action’s
influence taken by the company due to would-be damage that is actions to be
appropriate in nature. Further, the practices help in preventing the recurrence and
major issues causes. It is not so tough to make big investments and high returns
earning while in short-term, the decisions are compromised with the environment’s
quality and living in future resulting in possible burdens and harming the company’s
image with forcing of higher cost.
7. In short-term, there is a need of discipline in the companies where outcomes are not
approaching to attain sustainability followed and gained knowledge while taking
actions in relation to delivery returns in long-terms and capability increment. The
measuring requires systems for providing feedback and conducting sustainability
helping in the company to maintain the operational performance at a supreme level. In
companies, the success is achieved by following standard practices with all employees
for not to compromise the quality while improving sustainability to generate comfort
in the company (Sun, Yu, Xiao, Song, & Sun, 2018).
Alibaba Group planned to help the society in problem-solving by taking responsibility
so that the business can be managed with opportunities and risks across the globe. It consists
of social, economic, and environmental factors to attain the goal of the company that is
profitability from 2018-2036 for activating consumers from 642M-2BN. Also, SMEs with
10M of profits and 36M of job opportunities where there is a possibility of 100M indirectly
or directly (ESG Report, 2018). Moreover, the company is devoted to remove obstacles
solving the customer’s problems where Alibaba is always taking care of its stakeholders. It is
done by maintaining trust of the public and supporting while doing business possible
anywhere through achieving sustainability. Also, it helps in earning profits after solving
problems and growth for long-term as well.
The company makes employees and consumers their priority by doing the right thing
without influencing economic, social and environmental factors through business. Both
internal and external stakeholders helps in solving the issues where corporate governance
take responsibility of the society and make decisions by policies, processes and rules for
balancing risks and achieving profit with the leaders in management of the company.
Alibaba’s Board of Directors in long-term is responsible for achieving consisting of selecting
chairman and CEO, monitoring strategy, directing code of conduct, independent directors
nomination, and execution management (Zhou, Chen, & Li, 2018). In China, the company

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uses corporate structure for making the members and employees to obey applied laws, rules
and regulations in online business for governing foreign investment.
The performance and commitment of Alibaba is protecting its data, rights and cyber-
security if making priorities as rational property for crucially trusting customers, traders,
partners, and regulatory authorities. Though, the work is done for keeping operations
sustainable and healthy for business performance in the online marketplaces. Alibaba’s
authorization is shown with the brand quality products and stakeholders’ interest protection
counting consumers. There is a proactive approach applied by the company to aim at
identifying the issues before the complaints are received with the safe and healthy working
environment maintenance as a responsibility. The transparency of the company fosters the
communication through stakeholders with “AACA (Anti-Counterfeiting Alliance)” and
coordinating investigations offline implementing the law as well (Asih & Windiani, 2018).
The focus of the alliance is on monitoring and building, consumers’ awareness
programs, enforcement, sharing and court practices where traders are problematic with
important stakeholders. In e-commerce, it is important in business to have security and
accuracy while making transactions as a main priority providing satisfaction to the customer.
E-commerce platforms are secured by such practice to ensure of sustainability in business
with fraud and risks minimization. Alibaba ensures about data protection of consumers being
a sustainable organisation with procedures control and using advance technology. The
responsibility is guaranteed by the company to handle systematic data protocols for the
privacy of user. The services required to the “EU’s General Data Protection Regulation” are
fulfilled (Zhao & Chen, 2019). There are the expectations of the society by having qualified
people from the company.
Alibaba works with desire and values using technology to solve society’s problems
considering 86,833 approximate talented, able and trained employees. They operate in the
market having high competition while moving with long-term business through technology
for success in the company. Moreover, career development opportunities are clearly defined
by the company having different workforces to solve issues globally (Business Wire, 2018).
The company maintains an environment by working like a family with change acceptance
and respect, positively and perfectly. The company’s focus is mainly on small businesses
enabling, empowering women, and gaining consumer’s trust for social influence on the
working of Alibaba. The employees are forced in the company for devoting time to cause

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social influence and make a purpose of providing social services while charitable companies
are making Alibaba earn over US$ 50M in 2018 with traders of around 1.7M consisting over
360 million users ready to donate and employees to volunteer of around 482,601 (ESG
Report, 2018).
Alibaba Group is related with an environment universally with the carbon mark
reduction and applicability of innovation to deal with the challenges in terms of
sustainability. Further, keeping environment clean is possible with basic scarce resource
where the company’s duty is to reduce the impact on environmental sustainability in the
business by making innovation. The company works on the best practices in business and
with the help of informing strategies for long-term informs to adjust the systems in future. In
the companies, the technology used in the environment effectively is related to the hardware
infrastructure consumption that requires minimization. Thus, Alibaba decided to use Cainiao
Network as its process for building “green logistics parks” that will be powered by the solar
energy (Wu & Lin, 2018). It makes the people to avoid carbon emissions of over 1 million
tons annually.
Conclusion
It is to conclude that Alibaba Group is a sustainable corporation based in China
making day-to-day strategies while communicating with stakeholders for getting influenced
by the society being a global investment company to generate future success. The risks face
and opportunities provide to the company for its sustainability in business are for long-term,
also determined for the “Alibaba Digital Economy”. The company’s major agenda is for
resolving the cyber-security, corporate governance, social-contribution, IPR protection,
human capital, data protection process, and environment considering economic, social and
environmental characteristics. Lastly, the issues are taken seriously by the company’s
stakeholders based on their importance of groups and financial performance responsible for
business culture and model.

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