Free Essay on Creating a Sustainable Organization

There is a general consensus among business leaders that sustainability is the most important aspect to the future success of organizations, but most of them lack the technical knowledge to integrate it into their daily decisions, operations, and culture (Collins, 2001). These professionals wish to comprehend ways of sustaining sustainability over the long-term. These companies increasingly view organizational culture to be integral to the shift towards sustainable development (Bagley, Bagley, & HBS, 2006). Managers should build and reinforce sustainability values in their companies, and as well encourage and support employees as they aspire to embed sustainability (Collins, 2001).

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The organization should provide an environment that allows employees to make sustainable decisions effortlessly (Pannoni & Ricketts 2011). Such employees should as well be encouraged to implement these decisions on their personal lives, for instance, through secure car parking, ridesharing, and other programs (Duska, 2004). The senior leadership should clarify expectations through policies that enumerate practices for achievement of sustainable goals (Duska, 2004). It is vital that procedures and rules are established to integrate sustainable processes and strategies of the company (Banaji & Bazerman, 2003). Further, employees should be equipped and bolstered by incentives and training. Clark (2010) opines that the progress of the organization in terms of sustainability ought to be measured, tracked and reported to inform future changes and targets.

It is critical that the senior management takes a central role in order to entrench sustainability into the organizational culture. As Epstein, Rejc, & Yuthas (2010) have revealed, change momentum can be attained encouraging innovation through informal practices. The leadership should support and encourage a culture of sustainable innovation through the development of novel ideas necessary to take the organization a step closer to its sustainability objective in the long-term (Society for Human Resource Management, 2010). These practices guarantee and inspire employees to experiment and value the ideas of their colleagues.

References

Banaji, M. R., & Bazerman, M. H. (2003). How (un) ethical are you?. Harvard Business Review, 81, 12, 56-64.

Bagley, C. E., Bagley, C. E., & Harvard Business School. (2006). Winning legally: The value of legal astuteness. Boston: Division of Research, Harvard Business School.

Clark, W. W. (2010). Sustainable communities design handbook: Green engineering, architecture, and technology. Burlington, MA: Butterworth-Heinemann.

Collins, J. (January 01, 2001). Level 5 leadership. The triumph of humility and fierce resolve. Harvard Business Review, 79, 1, 66-76.

Duska, R. F. (2004). Six Cures for Current Ethical Breakdowns. Journal of Financial Service Professionals, 58, 23-26.

Epstein, M. J., Rejc, B. A., & Yuthas, K. (January 01, 2010). Implementing sustainability: The role of leadership and organizational culture. Strategic Finance, 41-47.

Pannoni, R. & Ricketts G., (2011). A taxonomy for learning, teaching, and assessing: A reason of Bloom's taxonomy of educational objectives. New York: Addison Wesley Longman, Inc.

Society for Human Resource Management (U.S.). (2010). Leveraging HR and knowledge management in a challenging economy. Alexandria, Va: Society for Human Resource Management.