Sustainable Development is a

development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the
ability of future
generations to meet their own needs. It contains within it two key concepts: the
concepts of
needs, in particular the essential needs of the worlds poor, to which overriding
priority should
be given; and the idea of limitations imposed by the state of technology and
social organisation of
the environments ability to meet present and future needs. Thus the goals of
economic and social
development must be defined in terms of sustainability in all countries
developed or developing,
market-oriented or centrally planned.

Corporate Responsibility is ethical responsibility applied to all three dimensions

of
sustainable development.

We see SD as defined by Brundtland and the model of the

triple-bottom-line as an ethical concept which offers ideas concerning
sustainable orientation on a
macro-level. The concept of SD on a corporate level is stated as Corporate
Sustainability which is
based on the three pillars economic, ecological and social issues, therefore, the
social dimension
is named CSR.

CSR is aimed at extending the legal requirements promoting ethics, philanthropy

and social reporting to satisfy stakeholder concerns.

Corporate sustainability focuses on long term economic and social

stakeholder expectations both by optimising their sustainability performance and
by participating in networks with governments, NGOs and other

stakeholders that can provide the capacity for the worlds sustainable
development.
The motivations of companies to address corporate responsibly and
sustainability varies widely from instrumental approaches using responsible
practices as a means of maximising profits to intrinsic approaches committing
the company to upholding its values and principles irrespective of the impact on
financial performance. The key business drivers are:
a)

strong brand and reputation;

b)

employer of choice;

c)

market position;

d)

trust of the financial markets and increased shareholder value;

e)

new green products / services and new markets.

It is becoming clear that leading companies of the future will have missions and
strategies to constantly increase shareholder value but as an integral part of
those strategies will also recognise and act upon the potential for:

addressing the interests of a broad range of stakeholders;

building societal value;

contributing to coalitions aimed at increasing the capacity for sustainable

development .

Corporate responsibility and sustainability management framework

As the business case for Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability is becoming
clearer it is also becoming evident that it could take some time before Corporate
Responsibility and Sustainability becomes part of mainstream business practice.

It is widely recognised that implementation of Corporate Responsibility and

Sustainability requires time to reach maturity and the speed of achieving
mainstreaming is dependant on leadership, training and organisational
capabilities to integrate CSR and sustainability policies in the overall business
strategy and in core operational processes.
Socially and environmentally responsible behaviour is multisided and is related
to all functions, decisions and processes in a company. The width and complexity
of the Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability scope makes mainstreaming a
change management challenge necessitating carefully planning and possibly
long term commitment to developing appropriate capabilities.

Key challenges in Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability management

include:

managing in an integrated manner the full lifecycle of CRS strategy

formulation, implementation, evaluation and evolution incorporating stakeholder
participation;

aligning responsibility strategy to corporate strategy focusing on:

rationalising and harmonising the economic, compliance, ethical, and

sustainability dimensions of corporate responsibility and sustainability in the
context of stakeholder requirements;
managing non-financial risk, particularly to brand, reputation, local licence
to operate and to performance instability as an integral part of corporate
sustainability management;
integrating eco-design and other sustainability requirements into product
and service offerings;

managing the sustainability performance optimisation process to

continually increase stakeholder satisfaction;

developing strategic responsibility and sustainability capabilities;

We define Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability as a company's verifiable commitment to operating in an

economically, socially and environmentally sustainable manner that is transparent and increasingly satisfying to its
stakeholders. Stakeholders include investors, customers, employees, business partners, local communities, the
environment and society. The emphasis is on transparent and verifiable stakeholder driven business
operationdelivering optimised sustainability performance and associated competitive advantage.
Sustainable business operation means addressing the needs of present stakeholders while seeking to protect,
support and enhance the human and natural resources that will be needed by future stakeholders.