The Path to Sustainable Corporate Management

The Path to Sustainable Corporate Management PDF Author: Ralf T. Kreutzer
Publisher: Springer Nature
ISBN: 3658439742
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 316

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Book Description

The Path to Sustainable Corporate Management

The Path to Sustainable Corporate Management PDF Author: Ralf T. Kreutzer
Publisher: Springer Nature
ISBN: 3658439742
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 316

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Book Description


Leading Sustainably

Leading Sustainably PDF Author: Trista Bridges
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 9780367495244
Category : Industrial management
Languages : en
Pages : 176

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Book Description
The business world is at an important crossroads. The age of the stakeholder is rapidly superseding that of the shareholder as climate change and political and societal shifts upend years of seeming prosperity. To move past this agitated age, business and society must learn to lead sustainably by putting purpose on equal footing with profit. The first step is understanding what's meant by sustainability and how it offers an opportunity for both business and society. Inspired by the launch of the 2030 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the book captures the ideas of more than 100 change makers from around the world about how business is putting sustainability at the core of strategy to survive, thrive, and realign its interests with society's. Leading Sustainably looks at how sustainability has evolved in a business context, offering powerful insights, key facts, and guidance on building sustainability capability within companies, measuring and managing impact, sustainable finance's transformation, and other topics critical to aligning businesses' central activities with sustainable principles. The book introduces five vignettes profiling best-in-class companies that were sustainable from the start and international case studies on business sustainability efforts, spanning industries from hospitality to waste management, fashion, finance, and more. Finally, Bridges and Eubank provide frameworks and in-depth direction firms can leverage when accelerating their transition to more sustainable business models. The book is a perfect guide for mid-level to senior managers seeking to understand this fast-changing business environment, how to factor sustainability into their decision-making, and why the SDGs changed everything.

Leading Sustainably

Leading Sustainably PDF Author: Trista Bridges
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1000043800
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 177

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Book Description
The business world is at an important crossroads. The age of the stakeholder is rapidly superseding that of the shareholder as climate change and political and societal shifts upend years of seeming prosperity. To move past this agitated age, business and society must learn to lead sustainably by putting purpose on equal footing with profit. The first step is understanding what’s meant by sustainability and how it offers an opportunity for both business and society. Inspired by the launch of the 2030 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the book captures the ideas of more than 100 change makers from around the world about how business is putting sustainability at the core of strategy to survive, thrive, and realign its interests with society’s. Leading Sustainably looks at how sustainability has evolved in a business context, offering powerful insights, key facts, and guidance on building sustainability capability within companies, measuring and managing impact, sustainable finance’s transformation, and other topics critical to aligning businesses’ central activities with sustainable principles. The book introduces five vignettes profiling best-in-class companies that were sustainable from the start and international case studies on business sustainability efforts, spanning industries from hospitality to waste management, fashion, finance, and more. Finally, Bridges and Eubank provide frameworks and in-depth direction firms can leverage when accelerating their transition to more sustainable business models. The book is a perfect guide for mid-level to senior managers seeking to understand this fast-changing business environment, how to factor sustainability into their decision-making, and why the SDGs changed everything.

Handbook on the Business of Sustainability

Handbook on the Business of Sustainability PDF Author: Yousafzai, Shumaila
Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing
ISBN: 1839105348
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 608

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Book Description
This ground-breaking Handbook uniquely focuses on the business of sustainability, offering a fresh insight and practical solutions to the challenges that businesses face in making human activity sustainable. It is organized into four distinctive themes that cut across levels of analysis and illustrate a rich set of solution contexts that will guide future research.

Sustainable Corporations

Sustainable Corporations PDF Author: Alan R. Palmiter
Publisher: Aspen Publishing
ISBN: 1543849016
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 747

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Book Description
Sustainable Corporations offers synthesized readings from law, management, philosophy, psychology, sociology, even biology – written by academics, journalists, business people, poets, bloggers, scientists, even religious leaders. The book focuses on the elusive “sustainable corporation” and is designed for an upper-level course sequenced after the basic Corporations course. Features of this Edition: Unlike many law texts, the book is meant to be absorbed in a sequential swoop as the concepts build on each other. The book, developed over the course of 10 years, has been used by law students, MBA students, graduate sustainability students, even undergraduate students – in both the US and Europe. The book can be used in a concentrated four-week course, an eight-week course, or a typical 14-week course. The book is meant to take professors and students on a journey from point A to point Z. It begins with a fresh look at U.S. corporate law, then moves to consider the US corporation’s unsustainable design, next describes the movement toward a focus on the Triple Bottom Line, then turns to proposals to redesign the corporation’s legal DNA, and finally offers a fundamental rethinking of the corporation. Professors and students will benefit from: The book’s main feature is its sequential design: (1) basics of US corporate law; (2) the corporation’s unsustainable design; (3) the Triple Bottom Line (ESG) movement; (4) proposals to redesign the corporation; (5) a deep rethinking of the corporation. Each chapter begins with a chapter overview, includes heavily edited readings from a variety of sources, features regular explanatory “break-out boxes, and offers end-of-chapter concluding thoughts (essays, poems, stories, fables, riddles). The book has its own website that includes the following materials for use by students (also available in Casebook Connect): online lectures, recommended videos (TED talks, interviews, documentaries, etc.), suggested YouTube music videos (from Hendrix Star-Spangled Banner to Dolly Parton Working Nine to Five), student research papers.

Life Cycle Management

Life Cycle Management PDF Author: Guido Sonnemann
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 9401772215
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 352

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Book Description
This book provides insight into the Life Cycle Management (LCM) concept and the progress in its implementation. LCM is a management concept applied in industrial and service sectors to improve products and services, while enhancing the overall sustainability performance of business and its value chains. In this regard, LCM is an opportunity to differentiate through sustainability performance on the market place, working with all departments of a company such as research and development, procurement and marketing, and to enhance the collaboration with stakeholders along a company’s value chain. LCM is used beyond short-term business success and aims at long-term achievements by minimizing environmental and socio-economic burden, while maximizing economic and social value.

The Quest for Sustainable Business

The Quest for Sustainable Business PDF Author: Wayne Visser
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1351277626
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 224

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Book Description
In January 2010, author, academic and social entrepreneur Dr Wayne Visser set off on a nine-month, 20-country "quest" to talk to entrepreneurs, business leaders and innovators and learn about how companies in all parts of the world can and are helping to tackle the world's most pressing social and environmental problems. His aim was to explore the many varieties of global approaches to sustainable business practices first-hand and to share some of the most innovative global examples.The result is this treasure trove of a book, full of stories, ideas, links to more than 100 video interviews, best practices and tools for making sustainable business work in a myriad of different contexts, cultures and settings. Besides sharing insights from his 2010 "CSR Quest World Tour", the author captures his professional experiences and the evolution of sustainable business over the past 20 years.The path begins in Africa and winds its way through Asia, North America, Europe, Australasia and Latin America. The author shares what he has learned in encounters with mega-corporations and small farmers, and conversations with CEOs and social entrepreneurs. There are facts and figures about world trends, and interviews with thought leaders and activists. This is a tale that consciously weaves the personal and the professional, mixing anecdotes and case studies. It looks outwards and reflects inwards, and is both autobiography and the life story of a global movement.

Strategic information systems management for environmental sustainability : enhancing firm competitiveness with Green IS

Strategic information systems management for environmental sustainability : enhancing firm competitiveness with Green IS PDF Author: Löser, Fabian
Publisher: Universitätsverlag der TU Berlin
ISBN: 3798327696
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 292

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Book Description
During the last three decades, information and communication technologies have fundamentally changed the way we work, live and communicate. The ubiquity of internet services, which become increasingly interactive and complex, together with enhanced connectivity, facilitated by innovative mobile devices, induces an ever-rising demand for computing, storage and data transmission capacities. Today, information systems (IS) constitute the backbone of the globalized economy and are indispensable for modern business and production processes. At the same time, environmental sustainability has evolved as the most pressing societal challenge of the 21st century, in particular due to the looming threats of climate change. By virtue of their global influence and reach, business companies significantly contribute to the creation of environmental problems, but owing to their organizational knowledge, capabilities and resources, they also have the capacity and ability to play a key role in shaping the path towards a more sustainable development. The companies leading the way have noticed that corporate sustainability is not necessarily a burden that negatively impacts their bottom line. If strategically managed, environmental product and process innovations can decrease operational costs, enhance corporate reputation, and differentiate from competitors. With regard to environmental sustainability, IS play a contradictory role: on the one hand, the manufacturing, operation and disposal of information technology (IT) infrastructure are responsible for serious environmental impacts: from the mining of conflict minerals to carbon dioxide emissions that equal those of the airline industry to enormous amounts of toxic e-waste. On the other hand, IS are perceived as key enablers of a "green" economy: environmental management systems and the reengineering of business processes can substantially reduce the environmental impacts of business organizations, while technological innovations provide opportunities to decrease the ecological footprint of end-user products and services. Many organizations have started to implement first environmental measures to decrease IT energy consumption and to reduce operational costs, mostly in an unstructured and uncoordinated manner though. Although Green IS practices feature a considerable potential to increase corporate environmentalism while creating promising business opportunities, the adoption of enterprise-wide cross-functional initiatives aimed at implementing Green IS has been rather slow. Economic uncertainties regarding the long-term effects of Green IS adoption and the lack of appropriate management frameworks have been identified as main inhibitors of an encompassing implementation of Green IS initiatives throughout the enterprise. In this context, this thesis addresses relevant research gaps, contributes to theory development in the evolving Green IS research discipline, develops practice-oriented management frameworks, and emphasizes the importance of following a strategic approach to leverage the competitive potential of Green IS. This cumulative thesis comprises an introduction that includes a literature review and a pre-study, four theory-based conceptual research articles, and two empirical studies, one of them building on qualitative, exploratory case study research whereas the other relies on quantitative data which has been analyzed with structural equation modeling. This thesis targets four specific research goals to advance theory-building in Green IS research and to promote the adoption of Green IS in practice. First, this thesis clarifies and defines the central terms and key concepts Green IT, Green IS, Green IS strategy, and Green IS practices drawing on a transdisciplinary research approach. Second, the most important challenges and inhibitors of Green IS adoption are identified and characterized. In particular, the lack of management frameworks, which encourage a holistic implementation that follows a strategic rationale, the complexity of strategic Green IS alignment, the multi-dimensional performance impacts of cross-functional initiatives and, above all, the uncertainty relating to the business case of Green IS practices, are identified as the most pressing challenges. Third, current actions of business firms to address these challenges are examined. Building on exploratory case study research, distinctive Green IS strategies are identified in managerial practice. Most notably, the empirical insights from quantitative survey research suggest a positive relationship between Green IS adoption and firm competitiveness, thus decreasing the economic uncertainty which inhibits the implementation of far-reaching environmental initiatives. Fourth, practice-oriented management frameworks are developed. The fine-grained Green IS strategy concept advises the formulation of strategies addressing the corporate, competitive, and functional management level. The proposed typology of four Green IS strategies illustrates distinct strategic options, from which executives can choose under consideration of their competitive targets and the firm-specific context. To allow for consistency of Green IS strategies, the presented alignment framework facilitates coherence with economic and environmental corporate goals. Furthermore, the actors, roles and responsibilities relevant to the alignment process are described. In addition, a management framework for the holistic adoption of Green IS, which specifies decisive management areas and distinguishes between three degrees of environmental impacts, is presented along with a comprehensive catalogue of Green IS implementation measures. As a consequence, this research offers both empirical insights and conceptual models to advance the adoption of Green IS initiatives, thus meeting the challenges of climate change and turning corporate sustainability into a business opportunity. Informationssysteme (IS) zeigen in Bezug auf ökologische Nachhaltigkeit gegensätzliche Eigenschaften. Einerseits verursachen die Herstellung, der Betrieb sowie die Entsorgung von Informationstechnologie (IT) – Infrastrukturen schwerwiegende negative Umweltauswirkungen: Vom Abbau von Konfliktmineralien über Kohlendioxidemissionen bis hin zu beträchtlichen Mengen giftigen Elektroschrotts. Andererseits werden IS als Schlüsseltechnologien für eine nachhaltige Wirtschaft gesehen. Umweltmanagementsysteme und die Umgestaltung von Geschäftsprozessen können den ökologischen Fußabdruck von Organisationen bedeutend verringern. Zudem eröffnen technologische Innovationen neuartige Möglichkeiten, die Umweltauswirkungen von Produkten und Dienstleistungen über den gesamten Lebenszyklus hinweg zu senken. Zahlreiche Organisationen haben damit begonnen, einzelne Green-IT-Maßnahmen zu implementieren um den Energieverbrauch und operative Kosten zu senken. Allerdings verfolgen die meisten Unternehmen hierbei keinen strukturierten oder strategischen Ansatz. Obwohl Green-IS-Initiativen beachtliche Potentiale zur Verbesserung der ökologischen Nachhaltigkeit von Organisationen bieten und gleichzeitig vielversprechende wirtschaftliche Chancen eröffnen, schreitet die Umsetzung von bereichsübergreifenden Green-IS-Maßnahmen in Unternehmen nur langsam voran. Ökonomische Unsicherheiten in Bezug auf die Rentabilität derartiger Maßnahmen sowie der Mangel an adäquaten Management-Frameworks werden in diesem Zusammenhang als zentrale Hinderungsgründe für eine strategische und ganzheitliche Umsetzung von Green-IS-Initiativen identifiziert. Diese Dissertation adressiert diese Hinderungsgründe, schafft Schlüsselkonzepte für den neuen Green-IS-Forschungszweig, entwickelt praxisorientierte Management-Frameworks und hebt die Bedeutung eines strategischen Ansatzes bei der Implementierung von Green IS hervor. Diese Forschungsarbeit offeriert empirische Einblicke wie auch konzeptionelle Modelle um die Umsetzung ganzheitlicher Green-IS-Initiativen in Organisationen voranzutreiben. Unternehmen haben somit die Chance, den Herausforderungen des Klimawandels verantwortungsvoll zu begegnen und gleichzeitig durch eine nachhaltige Unternehmensführung Wettbewerbsvorteile zu generieren.

The Interdependent Organization

The Interdependent Organization PDF Author: Rexford H. Draman
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1351285262
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 187

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Book Description
The Interdependent Organization provides its readers with a template for the development of an individualized transition plan to guide their journey toward becoming more organizationally sustainable. We as humans tend to rely on our current set of assumptions when we evaluate our actions and their potential impact on the future. With today’s ever-increasing rate of change in technology, our access to information, and cultural interactions (interdependence) around the world, the reliance on old ways of thinking (linear) will not allow us to effectively transition into the systems-based world of tomorrow. The Interdependent Organization presents a deeper understanding of the financial, operational, and cultural crossroads we are facing as a planet, and introduces a systems-based transitional path that individuals, organizations, and societies can draw on to move towards a more holistic and sustainable future. The book provides readers with the necessary understanding and insight into systems, systems-thinking, and the use of systems-based business tools to guide the sustainability journey while producing a positive impact to the organization’s bottom-line, its employee engagement, and its stakeholders’ expectations in each of the journey's three stages. The journey begins with the adoption of simple yet powerful systems-based tools for managing the organization’s operations and projects. These proven tools provide increased productivity with a proven bottom-line improvement that exceeds 30%. This introduction to systems-based tools and thinking provides the organization with the time to become more familiar with this new way of thinking and making business decisions before they expand their exposure to broader, more complex systems-based and sustainable practices. The second stage of this journey is focused on introducing new tools and practices to insure a consistent set of measures are used across the organization. The third and final stage focuses on aligning the organization’s people-management practices.

A Simple Path to Sustainability

A Simple Path to Sustainability PDF Author: Fred M. Andreas
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA
ISBN: 0313382700
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 274

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Book Description
With unequaled insight, business experts profile 12 outstanding, sustainable, small- to medium-sized enterprises and explain how their green strategies and methods have helped them succeed. A Simple Path to Sustainability: Green Business Strategies for Small and Medium-Sized Businesses is designed specifically to help smaller enterprises share in the benefits that flow from sustainability. Built around case histories showcasing 12 small to medium-size enterprises (SMEs) that have outstanding records of sustainability, this unique, hands-on guide will help readers choose and develop sustainability strategies and undertake the marketing and management initiatives necessary for success. The studies collected here detail each company's journey from initial idea through building a new culture, engaging stakeholders, gaining competitive advantage, and planning for the future. Each study also covers the challenges encountered, successes and failures, and lessons learned. Cases are centered around distinct themes, including a marketing/public relations perspective, a risk management perspective, an organizational culture perspective, and a new product development perspective. Taken as a whole, these stories do more than inform. They will inspire managers to become green entrepreneurs, undertaking sustainable strategies that can reap surprising benefits.