Sustainability promises both reduced environmental impacts and real cash savings for any organization – be it a business, non-profit/NGO or government department. This easy-to-use manual has been written by top business consultants specifically to help managers, business owners, organizational leaders and aspiring environmental managers/sustainability coordinators to improve their organization's environmental, social and economic performance.
The authors demystify 'sustainability', untangle the plethora of sustainability frameworks, tools and practices, and make it easy for the average person in any organization to move towards sustainability. Organized by sector (manufacturing, services and office operations, and government) and common organizational functions (senior management, facilities, human resources, purchasing, environmental affairs and compliance, marketing and public relations, and finance and accounting), the authors show how organizations can incorporate sustainability into their everyday work through the application of useful tools and self-assessments.
This new fully updated edition includes a new chapter on information and communication technology (ICT). The authors have also added many new facts, stories, practices and resources throughout The Business Guide to Sustainability to keep up with this rapidly emerging field. All of the SCORE sustainability assessments contained in the chapters have been brought up to date with the most current version and there is a new assessment for ICT.
Part I - Foundation Concepts
Sustainability as a Strategic Issue
Change Agent/Sustainability Coordinator: How to Keep a Sustainability Effort on Track
Part II - Sustainability by Industry Sector
Sustainability in Services and General Office Practices
Sustainability in Manufacturing and Product Design
Sustainability in Government Agencies
Part III - Sustainability by Organizational Function
Senior Management: How to Lead the Sustainability Effort
Facilities: How to Save Energy and Water, Improve Productivity and Reduce Waste
Human Resources: How to Support the Change Process and Bolster Employee Commitment
Purchasing: How to Determine What to Buy and How to Work with Suppliers
Information Technology: Making electronics part of the solution, not part of the problem
Environmental Affairs: How to Support the Move Beyond
Compliance and Eco-efficiencies to Sustainability
Marketing/Public Relations: Whether and How to Promote Your Sustainability Efforts
Accounting and Finance: How to Account for Environmental and Social Impacts
Darcy Hitchcock and Marsha Willard are with AXIS Performance Advisors based in Portland, Oregon, USA. They both teach in Bainbridge Graduate Institute's MBA in Sustainable Business and are both on the executive management team for the International Society of Sustainability Professionals.
"I have thumbed through [The Business Guide to Sustainability] so much the binding has disintegrated."
– Rich Carlson, founder, Viridian Advisors
Praise for the first edition:
"If you want your business to be part of the green-is-sexy movement and aren't quite sure how to get there, then this guide should be on the top of your business book stack"
– Sustainable Industries Journal
"Clear/concise and laid out in a way that made real sense. The way the chapters were structured (into the functions and sectors) was particularly helpful."
– Jacqueline Drumheller, Alaska Airlines
"An indispensable business guide that will serve as the fundamental tool in addressing the beginning of the Sustainability Revolution!"
– Keith H. Whitworth, Ph.D., Texas Christian University, Department of Sociology, Criminal Justice, & Anthropology
"Many organizations have made some progress toward more sustainable practices but don't know where to go next. SCORE is an excellent, systematic process for establishing where you are and where you need to go to become more sustainable."
– Ned Tillman, Chair, Environmental Sustainability Board, Howard County, Maryland
"Provides a clear methodology on how to take the first steps down the path toward being a sustainable business."
– Marco Mazzoni, Bainbridge Graduate Institute's MBA in Sustainable Business
"At last a business guide that's really about Business and a sustainability guide that's really about Sustainability. In this book, Hitchcock and Willard cut through the polarizing debates and the all or nothing arguments with a stepwise approach that clearly articulates how businesses can improve their performance without it being at the expense of those around them.
– Christopher Sheldon, co-author of Environmental Management Systems (3rd edition)
"At a time when 'big' business is beginning to mean 'sustainable' business, small businesses can easily get left out. Hitchcock and Willard have filled this vital gap admirably. This is a practical guide, dotted with heartening examples, of helping small businesses to adopt their sustainability mantles. An optimistic read."
– Tim O'Riordan, Emeritus Professor of Environmental Sciences, University of East Anglia, UK
"People are frequently frustrated by the process of applying the broad, theoretical concept of sustainability to concrete and practical applications. Hitchcock and Willard are uniquely skilled at helping organizations translate vision into action. They make sustainability accessible and understand how to leverage organizational dynamics to make a journey to sustainability possible."
– Rick Woodward, Corporate Director of Operations and Sustainability, Coastwide Laboratories, USA
"A cheerful little book [...] The story is straightforwardly told with ample lists and summaries and a scorecard system. A special strength is the well-chosen references, for those who want to read further"
– International Journal of Ambient Energy
"The text is well written and its broad coverage offers a host of practical guides to well-intentioned mangers."
– RHG, Social and Environmental Accounting Journal, April 2007
"Hitchcock and Willard [...] provide an excellent introduction and reference resource for the design, implementation, and evaluation of a business's sustainability plan to promote environmental conservation and reduce waste throoughout the organization."
– S. R. Kahn, Choice, June 2010