Project Management: Evaluating TBL Challenges in Procurement

This report evaluates the challenges and conflicts that arise when applying the Triple Bottom Line (TBL) principles to procurement, specifically focusing on the purchase of apparel for company staff uniforms. The report highlights how the TBL approach, which emphasizes people, planet, and profit, can create difficulties compared to traditional profit-driven strategies. It examines the challenges in quantifying the positive impacts on employees, the community, and the environment, as well as potential resistance from management and shareholders. The report then details how sustainability principles can be applied in this area by sourcing from local vendors, using organic and recycled materials, and ensuring fair labor practices. Finally, it identifies a potential conflict: the increased costs and reduced brand value associated with sustainable options, and the difficulty in balancing environmental and social considerations with economic viability. The report concludes by emphasizing the importance of considering a company's size and financial capacity when implementing TBL principles.

Evaluation of the triple bottom line can create challenges
The triple bottom line approach of business differs from more traditional approaches to
the factor that it is less money or profit-oriented. The basis of this approach delineates
that a business needs to focus on the impact it has on their employees, their community
and the environment. Thus, the need to generate revenue is diluted by the business’
need to produce a positive impact on the other three factors. While the approach seems
altruistic and the right thing to do for businessmen who are benevolent, the approach
has several difficulties that manifest when making a purchase of apparels the
organisation (Hoejmose et al. 2013). The first challenge is that profits and revenue
brought in by the sale of a product like apparels can be quantified but the positive
impact on the employees, community and environment cannot be. As a result, a
business has to depend on qualitative aspects which are indiscernible. Also, the
management and shareholders may object to this approach as their interests lie in
increasing the monetary worth to the company which stands in the way of focusing on
the other three aspects. Moreover, the manufacturing of apparels requires a large
number of resources, machines and fuel consumption. The apparel industry is also the
second-largest waste generating industry. As a result, the company might find it difficult
to grow and expand while at the same time being environment-friendly.
Explain how sustainability principles can be applied in this area
The product purchased is apparels for the company staff. Apparels will be used for
making special uniform for the staff so that they can be easily identified and approached
by the customers. As a service sector organisation, uniforms are of essence to appear
presentable before the staff and also for easy and memorable representation.
Three P’s of sustainability are :
People: Most of the large apparel brands and houses outsource their raw materials and
even finished products from places where cheap labour and resources are available. By
ensuring that the said apparel industry is locally based rather than some big brand, one
can ensure that the employees have been provided appropriate wages and working
conditions (Anvari, and Turkay, 2017).
Planet : order from a company that uses organic fabric and recycles their wastes. Also
sent the wastes generated after the use of these apparels for recycling again.
Profit : Choose a local group of vendors who do not extract added taxes from services
like branding.
Identify and explain one potential conflict or challenge of applying the TBL
principles to purchasing this product/service
In some cases, the decisions that benefit the environment is not the one that is the most
economically viable solutions. For instance, buying organic and recyclable items are
costlier, lacklustre, easily torn and high in maintenance. This will add on to some
increased costs for the company but will be better for the environment. Similarly buying
from a local group of vendors who do not outsource their products and provide
appropriate remuneration and healthy environment for their employees will have a
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smaller brand value and impact. It is difficult to manage the claims of the environment
and the social community as the most economic and financially viable method has been
developed by oppressing employees and exhausting natural resources. Finding an
equally cheap alternative is difficult and not always applicable (Johnson & Flynn, 2015).
It depends on the size and earning of the company and whether they will be able to
handle some increased costs for the sake of society and the environment.
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References
Anvari, S. and Turkay, M., 2017. The facility location problem from the perspective of
triple bottom line accounting of sustainability. International Journal of Production
Research, 55(21), pp.6266-6287.
Hoejmose, S., Brammer, S. & Millington, A. (2013) 'An empirical examination of the
relationship between business strategy and socially responsible supply chain
management’, International Journal of Operations & Production Management, 33 (5),
pp. 589–621.
Johnson, P.F., & Flynn, A. E. (2015) Purchasing and supply management. 15th ed.
McGraw-Hill Higher Education.
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