One is tempted to ask: What exactly is sustainable management and how can it be used? In this article we will delve into what sustainable management style entails, why it is important and how it can be implemented in practice.
Sustainable leadership can also benefit from, or in collaboration with, other leadership styles: Read also about agile management and how to learn to master it.
What is sustainable management?
Sustainable management involves a balance between financial objectives and sustainable and persistent safeguarding of employees' well-being and development. It's a bit in the title. Something that is durable and 'strong'. A sustainable management style must therefore include a sustainable and sustainable approach to the organisation and the surrounding world.
Sustainable management is a management style that simultaneously seeks to focus on long-term value creation for your organization by taking into account environmental, economic and internet/social factors, respectively. By leading sustainably, you lead in a way that helps ensure the development and well-being of the organization in the long run - without consequences for society and the environment.
Companies that integrate sustainable management into their organisational structure have been shown to have achieved increased competitiveness, significant financial performance and improved reputation overall. This is underlined by a report from Harvard Business Review, where it was found that sustainable companies tend, as a rule, to higher share prices and better financial performance over time.
In addition to an economic benefit, studies from Globescan At the same time, 79% of employees surveyed, from different sectors and geographies, prefer to work for a company with a strong sustainability profile.
Therefore, it really pays to create a sustainable foundation for your business. But where to start?
The main principles of sustainable management
To be able to implement sustainable management for your company in strategy and daily practice, it requires an overview of the overall sustainable management style. You can start from the following 3 starting points:
- Financial accountability: Make sure your business is financially sustainable. This means that it must generate profits and growth, but without harming the environment or society. This also applies to business partners, as the external image of the company in some cases also helps define the sustainability of the company.
- Environmental responsibility: Implement environmentally friendly practices such as waste sorting, energy efficiency and renewables. It can also be done by supporting and vouching for environmental initiatives or voluntary projects. However, support cannot stand alone - your company must also be responsible for the environment itself.
- Social responsibility: Focus on creating a positive work environment where you promote equality and support the local community around your business. A positive work environment is also about making sure that your employees can vouch for your company's approaches and attitudes towards sustainability. Among other things, you can implement an increased focus on the social well-being of your employees, in order to create a safe and balanced work environment.
Read more about psychological safety here.
Maybe you're thinking that there are a lot of things to juggle at the same time. And we understand that, but like everything else, it's about finding a balance.
The balance between economic, environmental and social considerations
But how do you manage to balance economic, environmental and social considerations? To find a foothold for sustainable management requires an understanding of the basic terms: ensuring growth for the company without compromising the environment and society. Growth for employees, competitiveness and economy.
UN Global Goals
By taking a look at the '17 Sustainable Development Goals' (SDGs), you can get an overview of how you can exercise sustainable leadership - or be inspired, so to speak. The SDGs provide a comprehensive framework for how companies can contribute to global sustainability.
By incorporating these approaches, your company can not only enhance sustainability efforts, but also support global efforts to address pressing environmental and social issues.
These 17 points can be used as a 'bucket list' and motivation for your business - something that you can set out to achieve together.
Ole Fogh Kirkeby on the 3 Aspects of Sustainability
If the 17 SDGs are too big a mouthful, here are 3 aspects that you can take as a starting point.
Philosopher Ole Fogh Kirkeby highlights three essential aspects of sustainability in the context of management:
- The ability of employees to survive and unfold in the organization
It may sound overwhelming that employees should be able to 'survive' in the organization, but this is meant in a professional context. Employees must thrive and succeed in their work, where at the same time there is opportunity and space for personal and professional development.
- Respect for the company's social responsibility
The company is responsible for the actions and associated impact on society. This also implies ethical practice and internal commitment.
- To conduct it's business with regard to the environment
Conscious action is required by companies to reduce environmental footprints.
It is the role of management to align employees' personal goals with the company, so that the efforts contribute to an adequate purpose for the employees.
So the answer to the question from before is: assess where your company can contribute to sustainability and increase the focus on creating an overall sustainable approach for the organization. In this way, sustainable development is ensured, while maintaining the direction of the company.
This is why sustainable management is important
One is tempted to believe that sustainable leadership is only important to maintain moral and ethical obligations. But, as you've probably already figured out, it can have direct benefits for your business.
By placing sustainability high on the priority list, your company can benefit from, among other things, increased customer loyalty, higher employee well-being and a strengthened image in the market. Sustainable management is therefore not only important and good for mother earth, but also for the well-being and development at the internal level of the company.
To substantiate this claim, we can, with the help of studies from Globescan, highlighting Patagonia, which is the company most recognized among experts for its sustainability efforts. Patagonia has succeeded in integrating sustainable management and has even taken it to an unprecedented level by, among other things, channeling its profits into climate and nature efforts. At the same time, Patagonia experienced higher employee engagement as sustainability increased because employees experienced a sense of pride for their work.
Patagonia is a great example of why prioritizing and implementing sustainable management is a huge advantage.
Sustainable management as a priority
In order to prioritize sustainable management, it requires a strategic approach and sustained commitment from all layers of the organization. A culture must be created where sustainability becomes an integral part of the company's DNA.
But how to get there?
- Awareness raising: Employees must be made aware of and taught about the importance of sustainability and the role they individually play in this development. If goals are too vague or distant for employees, it can lead to neglect of them - sustainability must be evident in all layers of the organization.
- Sustainability as a strategy: Integrate sustainability goals into the overall strategy and objectives of the company. In this way, sustainability comes in as a core value and priority for the company.
- Sustainable collaboration: Collaborate with suppliers, customers and the company's local community to drive progress for sustainable approaches. In this way, the company is at the same time helping to support other sustainable professions, which not only contribute to a good reputation, but also an increased attention to precisely sustainable principles.
Are you ready to lead sustainably?
Everyone starts somewhere, and Feedwork makes a virtue out of being sustainable for our employees and customers with a focus on Psychological safety and Commentaires. By prioritizing sustainable management, you can not only contribute positively to the planet and society, but also achieve long-term success as well as internal and external growth for your company.
At Feedwork, we help companies with management advice. We offer specialized solutions and advice that can guide you through the process and ensure that your organization becomes part of the solution to, among other things, the world's sustainability challenges - Win win.
