Many companies have recognized the environmental impact of their business on climate change and other environmental issues in recent years. Many companies believe that a technical solution will solve all problems, which will allow them to avoid any negative consequences in the future. But it is often closer than you think.
Cornell SC Johnson College of Business faculty launched an online certificate recently to help managers think more holistically and take action on the social and environment impacts of their businesses. Sustainable BusinessThrough eCornell
Professors Glen Dowell, Chris Marquis, and Mark Milstein collaborated to create the certificate. They also provided timely, practical training for managers, entrepreneurs, and other professionals in operations.
People tend to think of sustainability as environmental. But sustainability, by definition, has three main pillars: economic, social, and environmental. If you don’t constantly iterate on these three elements, you aren’t addressing sustainability.
The program consists of five, two-week long courses that teach and empower participants to create new business models for their companies across all three pillars. Businesses must also be accountable for their actions and how they impact the environment and the communities and people in their supply chain. This will help them to maintain a good standing with their customers.
Dowell states that it’s not just about whether a product leaves a large footprint. It’s about the location and dimensions of the footprint. Let’s take clothing, for example. Many people don’t know this. [its]Exceptional social and environmental impact.
Tremendous disasters like the 2013 collapse at Rana Plazaa garment factory, Bangladesh, which did not adhere to safety and management policies, claimed the lives and injured over 2,500 workers.
Dowell continues, “These accidents can cause people to lose their consciousness.” It’s not something we take for granted. This is made worse by fast fashion, which allows us to buy clothes that aren’t meant to be worn for long periods of times.
The Sustainable Business certificate provides tools and exercises to help business leaders create a sustainability plan they can use in their own organizations. These decisions can lead to new market opportunities and higher revenue by leveraging the most recent best practices and emerging technology.
The program also includes a course in stakeholder management that will help participants get buy-in from other leaders or managers and make necessary changes.
Milstein advises that the past cannot be used as a guideline for the future. You have to come up with new ways of doing it. You need to try new things.
Molly Israel and Chelsea Nuesi are contributors to eCornell.