Sustainable Business: Meeting Current Needs Without Hurting Future Interests - Essay Sample

Introduction

Sustainability emphasizes meeting the current needs of the business and society without hurting the future interests of society and the business. Therefore as a business, it is imperative to ensure that the waste treatment, chemical, energy, and water use can meet the organization's current needs without having a future negative impact either n its reputation or balance sheet. Therefore, the organization has to change to create its business decisions in terms of rather than just a single financial year or a few months. Sustainability is viewed within three major paradigms which also denote its scope, these are:

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Profits

The primary focus of any business is to make profits. As an organization, it's imperative to contract service providers who can anticipate our needs and meet them at a fair price. It's also important for us to look at which services can we provide internally as an organization and which of these can be outsourced without hurting the balance sheet. For example, we should consider outsourcing cleaning and waste collection services hence reducing the wage bill in the long term. Other positions to be reconsidered include the hr office, it is possible to outsource some of the HR, legal and accounting functions. For example, the organization could task professional head hunters with the responsibility of hiring new employees; we could hire another firm to carry out auditing and accounting of the organization's accounts. The legal services such as health and safety advice and legal advice can be outsourced or the offices merged. The remaining staff should focus CBSA should also consider investing in alternative sources of energy such as solar which would be more efficient and profitable in the long term. A review of the marketing avenues will also be carried out. Due to the development and growth of social media, the company will be encouraged to focus its resources on social media which is faster and more efficient as compared to traditional forms of communication. Social medial allows for targeted ads which are likely to attract more consumers.

Planet

The organization's business decisions should be aimed at making the environment safer and cleaner. As an organization, we should make plans while also being considerate of the environment. For example, there is a need to ensure that the wastes produced within the business are not released to the environment without being treated first. The type of input goods used would also need to be considered here to ensure that they don't have a detriment to the environment. Therefore the organization would consider initiatives such as engaging in reforestation of water sources as a corporate social responsibility initiative or increase the use of energy-efficient bulbs and cooling systems for the organization. A redesign of the organization's building could also be considered. This would involve repositioning windows to ensure more sunlight can be used to light the buildings rather than relying on electricity.

Social

An organization does not exist in a vacuum. Therefore, there is a need to ensure that an organization's activities have a positive impact on its immediate neighbors. It's therefore important for the organization to engage in corporate social responsibility activities that meet society's needs. These include the establishment of water refining services, the establishment of recreational parks or the provision of free clinic days. The CSR activities create a positive image for the organization while also providing the organization with free marketing especially if they are covered by the media comprehensively.

Therefore the organization's activities should ensure an overlap of these pillars to ensure sustainability.

Stakeholders

Sustainability initiatives will consider different stakeholders. These have been discussed below:

Employees

Employees are the most important resources of the organization. Therefore they will have to be front and center in whichever direction the organization decides to go. They will be required to give their input and offer alternative thoughts on some decisions. Some of the proposals include retrenching employees or merging departments. Hence, it's important for management to offer counseling services to the affected employees to prepare them. Financial advice should also be offered to help them cope on a smaller budget after retrenchment. Management, through the human resource department, should also allow employees who are willing, to retrain and take up new roles within the organization rather than firing all of them. It will also be important to ensure that retrenchment and transfer of skills work within the organization's and government laws to avoid lawsuits.

Service Providers

Service providers will have to adhere to the organization's need for sustainability. Therefore, the will have to show that their goods and services are fairly priced and their production doesn't destroy the environment. Therefore CBSA will offer requirements that the service providers will have to meet. These will include, the chemicals used in cleaning chemicals among others.

Neighboring Community

The surrounding community will offer input on their pressing needs and how as CBSA we can alleviate these needs. The community will be involved in running some of the CSR projects under the business. This will encourage them to own the process.

Workers Union Groups

The workers' union groups will be involved by the organization during the retrenching and skills transfer. They will be required to represent the employees. Positive engagement with the groups will ensure that the interests of both employees and the organization are met.

Consumers

CBSA customers will be informed of the changes within the organization. This is because the business decisions taken by the organization will affect them. They will be informed that the changes are meant to ensure they are served efficiently and ensure they get value for their money.

Government

The government is a major stakeholder in his project. This is because of its role in the creation and enforcement of laws which the business has to abide by. Therefore, the organization will abide by laws regarding employee retrenchment and compensation among others. The organization will seek the government's support in overcoming some of the challenges.

Media

The media would stand to lose a lot in advertisement costs once a review of suitable marketing procedures is carried out. Therefore it's imperative to explain to the media the reasons for the changes and emphasize that the changes don't indicate that the business is undergoing any financial challenges. This is important because, the media will be expected to communicate the same to the organization's competitors, partners, customers, and shareholders.

Shareholders

Shareholders are important because they will be expected to foot the restructuring of human resources and other CSR projects. Their participation will ensure that the project is well funded hence boosting its chances of success.

Legislation:

The Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999

This law makes it an offense for an organization or individual to make any developments that are going to have a negative consequence on the areas protected by the ACT. These areas as defined by the act include world heritage properties, national heritage properties, wetlands of international importance, migratory species protected by international agreements, listed species and ecological communities, commonwealth marine parks, nuclear actions, and Green Barrier Reef Marine Park. This legislation is of significance because as an organization, we will have to ensure that whichever means of disposing of wastes and chemicals are do not interfere with the protected areas. The act also highlights that the local government is required to approve activities protected under the act. These include clearing native vegetation, changing the natural flow of water or controlling weed and pests. Some of these activities will also require clearance from the environment minister. Hence there is a need for CBSA to have a close engagement with the relevant bodies to ensure compliance with this law. The organization could also fund agencies involved in protecting these areas as part of its CSR. This will be more cost-effective as compared to establishing its activities from the ground up.

Regulations to be considered include R166- termination of employment recommendation 1982(NO. 166) by the International Labour Organisation. This regulation states that once an employee is given notice of retrenchment. They are entitled to some time off to allow them to seek alternative employment opportunities. Therefore the business needs to ensure that the employees are given adequate time to seek alternative job opportunities while also ensuring the company operations are not affected.

Code of Practice

The organization will have to create its code of practice that will have to be adhered to by service providers, customers, employees, and the shareholders. The code should highlight the organizations shift to sustainable business practices. It should encourage all the stakeholders to join the organization in its journey to sustainability.