Characteristics of Top Sustainability Cultures

Many of the businesses we speak with approach sustainable development with traditional structured implementation processes. While this is a familiar approach, there are alternative methods that can more effectively engage stakeholders in the process. The best in class business sustainability cultures are doing things a little bit different.

An effective plan for long-term sustainability involves more than just defining a vision, creating a strategy, implementing sustainability concepts, and managing the on-going processes. Our professional consulting has observed that leading companies are stepping outside traditional business structure too add spontaneity to their sustainability plans.

Successful implementations recognize that communication and learning are success factors in the pursuit of business sustainability. While business and economic growth are the ultimate goals, there is value in the knowledge gained from each success and even failure. By allowing for flexibility and promoting innovation across the value chain, these organizations capture the interests of stakeholders and ensure their active participation.

Leading companies continue to do more than the competition. Here are a few characteristics that differentiate the good from the best-in-class in business sustainability:

•    Retailers are considered to be a step ahead in stakeholder engagement, communicating their sustainability goals up and down the value chain.

•    Top performers utilize technology to monitor and communicate sustainability results.

•    Best-in-class companies are transparent and communicate sustainability progress to external stakeholders.

•    Leading businesses promote an open culture, engaging employees in the business sustainability direction of the company.

The ability to remain open to test new ideas and different strategies will often payoff in the long run. Companies are encouraged to continuously assess and reassess the needs of their internal and external stakeholders. These engagements allow businesses to address changes in the market leading towards a path of greater business sustainability.

At Taiga Company, we maintain an open culture as part of our core values, and our professional consulting encourages clients to include active engagement as part of their business sustainability plan.