UK Government in Encouraging Sustainability in Businesses Essay

UK Government in Encouraging Sustainability in Businesses - Essay Example This essay stresses that  the concept of sustainability first became prominent with the publication of the Bruntland Report in 1987. The report defines sustainability as â€Å"meeting present needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs†.From this paper it is clear that  the concept of sustainability has evolved overtime since it was first defined. In earlier days, it was mainly an operational concern that focused on defensive strategies to cut waste and reduce organizational footprint. It then evolved and took a more strategic stance with focus shifting to value chains and innovation from waste and cost reduction. Right now, the concept pervades all organizational decision making.  This trend clearly shows a move towards rendering the term sustainability in business redundant as it will simply be how business is done. However in the present, businesses are consciously incorporating sustainability into their business decisions.   Most businesses express their sustainability goals through corporate social responsibility (CSR) commitments. CSR within an organisation is often composed of practises, policies and programs that are integrated throughout the business’s operations from decision making, processes to supply chain, which aim at ensuring current sustainable business operations taking into consideration future impacts.  Governments around the globe have increasingly grown aware of the significance of encouraging sustainability in businesses.... hows that many organizations are actively integrating and incorporating sustainability principles into their business operations, and the reasons behind this go far beyond reputation management. A sustainable business hence genuinely delivers environmental, economic and social benefits simultaneously in its operations while minimising the damage to society and the environment (Nidumolu, Prahalad, and Rangaswami, 2009:1). Most businesses express their sustainability goals through corporate social responsibility (CSR) commitments. CSR within an organisation is often composed of practises, policies and programs that are integrated throughout the business’s operations from decision making, processes to supply chain, which aim at ensuring current sustainable business operations taking into consideration future impacts (Petrini and Pozzebon, 2010: 364; Baumgartner and Ebner, 2010:77). Companies are increasingly inclined to incorporate society’s expectations of ethical busines s practices into their business strategies as a way of not only responding to pressures from stakeholders such as employees and consumers among others, but also exploring opportunities that create competitive advantage for the company. Assessment of the role of UK government in encouraging sustainability in businesses as compared to other stakeholders Governments around the globe have increasingly grown aware of the significance of encouraging sustainability in businesses. In the UK, the government has played a critical role in encouraging sustainability in businesses. The government’s role in sustainability adoption often takes a regulatory approach. This is unlike other stakeholders of an organisation which have different key roles to play in encouraging sustainability, for instance, employees