Thursday, July 3, 2014

Why The Future of leadership Depends on Sustainability

To begin with, I would start the introduction of article by this quote - “It is not the strongest of the species that survives, or the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change” by Charles Darwin about The Need to Respond to Sustainability.

When we talk about Sustainability it doesn’t mean we should only focus about planet aspect without including the other major elements. Sustainability does not simply mean whether something can last. It addresses how particular initiatives can be developed without compromising the development of others in the surrounding environment, now and in the future (Hargreaves & Fink 2000).


http://yasseralmimar.blogspot.ae/2014/06/information-technology-and-sustainable.html

In every era, some organizations or companies are judged to be leaders. What earns them this distinction and differentiate, however, this is not always considered as constant. The criteria that define “leadership” have developed over time and began to take different concept. I recent years the yardstick has been the ability to innovate. Today the framing of corporate leadership is shifting again, to a concept that encompasses the learning and best practices from all these antecedents: corporate sustainability. 

The move towards sustainability is not simply to achieve a worthy cause, nor is to convince the relevant institutions that we are corporation cares about the environment. Rather, it is recognition that those who can make efficient and responsible use of natural resources and human capital are more likely to be the destination of choice for talent and investment. Therefore, as mentioned earlier concept of sustainability extends beyond environmental impact, although this consideration naturally looms large especially for manufacturing and extraction businesses. Today, sustainability assessments include environmental and social practices, as well as related governance.


Most large companies acknowledge the need to be more responsive to shifting societal expectations, to be better able to establish trusting relationships with stakeholders, and to become more open and accountable. And yet those same companies often struggle to translate good intentions into good practice.


There are several examples show how the sustainability integrates into the brand and client value propositions, for instance, IBM decided earlier than many to integrate sustainability into its brand and customer value propositions. It has effectively used its Smarter Planet TM theme to communicate how the company helps its clients enhance their performance in ways that foster sustainability. Recent IBM advertising has been focused almost exclusively on outcomes and social benefit, rather than products and services. While some companies such as Intel choose to build reputation through secondary communication channels, most of the study’s Leaders follow the IBM example. 


To sum up, sustainability leadership offers new ways to respond to today’s leadership challenges. The traditional leadership metrics that developed out of an industrial frame is no longer sufficient. In the competition market today, the focus is pouring on individual and corporate goals, shareholder value, and the financial bottom - line. As Kotter said; Sustainability leadership – like all leadership – is fundamentally about change, as it often entails engagement of uncertainty and the unknown

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