IntroductiontoSustainableDevelopment&CorporateSustainability

2CreditCorecoursetoBMStudents
XLRIJamshedpur
Instructor:Dr.TataL.RaghuRam(Ph:6653196;M:9934360121;Email:raghutata@xlri.ac.in)

Thestrategistwhoisunconcernedbysustainabilityisakintoanarchitectwhocaresnotwhethertheirbuildingstands
orfalls

JamesMackenzie

Introduction
Sustainable Development (SD) in the corporate context has most commonly been interpreted to mean business
development that integrates socioenvironmental and equitable benefit sharing concerns into decision making while
contributingtointerandintragenerationalhumanwellbeing.Variousnationalandinternationalpolicyandregulatory
frameworkshaveemergedtoencourageadaptationofSDpractices.Historically,businesseshavetreatedSDconcernsas
peripheral issues, outside the realm of mainstream business decision making. Social responsibility and environmental
management have been framed as added costs driven primarily by guilt or regulation. Over the last decade the
understanding of business and sustainability interlinkages has undergone a paradigm shift. Balancing the often
conflicting stakeholder interests has emerged as a new business challenge. As Porter and Kramer (2011) framed it,
sharedvaluecreation(creatingwinwinoutcomesforallstakeholders)hasemergedthepathforwardfor21stcentury
businessenterprises.Inthiscontext,tomaximizeafirmscompetitiveadvantage,managersshouldlearntoincludeSD
concernsintothefullrangeofbusinessoperationsandstrategicdecisionmaking.Evenmoreimportantly,theyneedto
beabletotakeadvantageofthebusinessopportunitiesinherentinsocietysdemandsforSD.
In a nutshell, SD aims to achieve a balance between economic (Profit), social (People) and environmental (Planet)
objectives.Manyenterprisesarenowactivelyseekingtopullthesetogetherunderacompetitivestrategythatcaptures
this triple bottom line. There is a real potential for competitive advantage to be increasingly rooted in such new
capabilitiesasresourceoptimization,designingforenvironment,socialresponsiveness,stakeholderengagement,going
beyondcomplianceandgainingsocialconsenttooperateetc.
ThiscourseisdesignedtosensitizeandequipstudentswithskillstonavigatetheinterfaceofbusinessandSD.

CourseObjectivesandAssuranceofLearningGoals
Attheendofthecourse,studentswillbeableto:

Developanunderstandingoftheemergingnational/globalSustainableDevelopmenttrendsandtheirrelevance
tobusinessmanagement.

Developstakeholdersensitivitytobeabletodrivemanagerialdecisionstocreatesharedvalueforinterand
intragenerationalequity

DevelopafamiliaritywiththevarioustoolsandframeworksthatenableintegrationofSDconcernsintobusiness
decisionmaking

StandardTextBook/referencematerial
*Soft copies of basic reading materials or URLs of important resources will be uploaded onto AIS. Additional
resourceswillbeprovidedaswhenrequired.
Sessions1,2
WhatisSustainableDevelopment?

GrowthVs.development
Complexityofinterandintragenerationalequity
StrongsustainabilityVs.weaksustainability
Conceptofexternalitiesandstakeholders
MarginalAbatementcostsVs.Marginalsocialcosts
FriedmanVs.FreemanVs.Sharedvaluecreationmodels
WhyisittimetoleaveGDPbehind

WhatisCorporateSustainability?

HowisitdifferentfromSustainableDevelopment?
RelevanceofCorporateSustainabilityinaglobalizedeconomy
DriversofcorporateSustainability

Policyapproachestosustainabilitymanagement

Precautionaryprinciple
Commandandcontrol
Marketbasedapproaches

Readings
Session3,4

1. IntroductiontoSustainability:HumanityandtheEnvironment
2. TimetoleaveGDPbehind(2014).Volume505,Nature.

Sustainabilitymanagementtoolsandsystemsconcepts

Session5

EnvironmentalImpactAssessment(www.iaia.org)
SocialImpactAssessment(http://trasi.foundationcenter.org;
http://mckinseyonsociety.com/socialimpactassessment)
CircularEconomy&industrialecology(http://www.ellenmacarthurfoundation.org/circular
economy)
LifeCycleAssessment(TheInternationalJournalofLifeCycleAssessment,Springer)
EnvironmentalManagementsSystemsISO14001
(http://www.iso.org/iso/home/standards/managementstandards/iso14000.htm)
DesigningforSustainability(http://www.d4sde.org)
ExtendedProductResponsibility
(http://www.greenpeace.org/international/PageFiles/24472/epr.pdf)
GlobalReportingInitiative(https://www.globalreporting.org)
Carbondisclosureproject(www.cdp.net)

Ecosystemservices&corporateperformance

Risks&opportunitiesarisingfromecosystemschange
Corporateecosystemservicesreview
Emergingmarketsforecosystemservices
NetPresentValueofforestsandCAMPA

Readings
1. CentralEmpoweredCommittee(2006).Calculationofnetpresentvalue(NPV)payableonuseof
forestlandofdifferenttypesfornonforestpurposes
2. http://envfor.nic.in/content/reportrevisionratesnpvapplicabledifferentclasscategory
forestscommentsinvited
2

Sessions6

Operations&SupplyChainSustainability

Whysustainabilityisnowthekeydriverofinnovation?
Integratingsustainabilityintosupplychainmanagement:EnvironmentalProfit&LossAccounts

Readings
1. Decoupling2:technologies,opportunitiesandpolicyoptions
2. Remakingtheindustrialeconomy.McKinseyquarterly,2014
3. Ram Nidumolu, C.K. Prahlad and M.R.Rangawamy (2009). Why sustainability is now the key
driverofinnovation?HarvardBusinessReview
Sessions7

MarketingandCorporateSustainability
Responsiblemarketing
Sustainabilityasadriverofcustomerpreferencesandbuyingbehavior
Marketfailure,greenmarketingopportunities,globalSustainablePublicProcurementinitiatives,
ecolabels,greenmarketingmyopia,sustainabilityformarketpenetration,expansionetc
Readings
1. JacquelynA.Ottman,EdwinR.Stafford,andCathyL.Hartman(2006).AvoidingGreenMarketing
Myopia.Environment.Volume48,Number5.

Session8

FinanceandSustainability

Doesitpaytobesustainable?
PrinciplesforResponsibleInvesting
SociallyResponsibleInvesting
DJSI/ESGIndia50
CarbonDisclosureProject
EquatorPrinciples
IFCsustainabilityduediligenceframeworks
Thevaluedrivermodel

Readings
1. Doesitpaytobegreen?Asystematicoverview
2. Thevaluedrivermodel:atoolforcommunicatingthebusinessvalueofsustainability
3. DowJonesSustainabilityIndex.http://www.sustainabilityindex.com
Session9

Sessions10
Session11,12

HRM,OrganizationalchangeandLeadershipforSustainability
SustainabilityLeadership:MakingChangeHappen
Extending corporate sustainability to the human resource management and organizational
behaviordomains
Readings
1. EgonZehnderInternational(2009).SustainabilityLeadershipMakingChangeHappen:PartIThe
Executive.
2. Frederick P.Morgeson et.al (2013). Extending corporate social responsibility research to the
human resource management and organizational behavior domains: a look to the future.
PersonalPsychology(66).

StrategicCSR
CompaniesAct,2013CSRandClassActions
StrategyandSustainability:EmergingTrends
Socialconsenttooperate

Howsustainabilityisdrivingstrategy?
Costreduction,riskavoidance,revenuegeneration,intangiblevalueadditiondimensions
Thegreenonion.Acorporateenvironmentalstrategyframework.
3

Sharedvaluecreationmodelimplicationsfor21stcenturybusiness

Readings
1. Porter,MandKramer,M(2011).Thebigidea:creatingsharedvalue.HarvardBusinessReview,
89(1,2).
2. Thegreenonion.Acorporateenvironmentalstrategyframework.
Session13

Connectingthedots

Buildingnationalcompetitivenessthroughsustainability

Pedagogy
Eachsessionwillhave3components:
1. Introductionandbusinessrelevanceofthedaystopicbytheinstructor
2. Groupprojectpresentation

3. Discussion

:45minutes
:20minutes
:20minutes

CourseEvaluation
1. Individualresearchonsustainability:

25%

Chooseasustainabilitytopic/issueofyourchoice.Criticallyanalyzetheissuethroughresearchandsubmitastateofthe
artarticlewhichwillbenolongerthan4pages+references.Youshouldhavereadatleast10journalarticlesand
referencesshouldbecited.Submissionwillbeduewithin30daysofcommencementofthecourse.

2. Attendance:

10%

Inadditionto10%,absencefromclassbeyond2sessions(withpermissionorotherwise),willattract3negativemarks
per session. Missing 5 sessions or more will attract F grade. Leave of absence should be notified to the course
instructor.Requestsforattendingaclasswithanothersectionwillnotbeentertained.

25%(15%forwriteup+10%forpresentation)
3. Groupprojectandpresentation:

From session 2 onwards, students in groups (5 students/group/roll number wise) will research and present on a pre
assignedtopic.Inaddition,eachgroupwillconductathoroughresearchonthetopicandsubmita4pagewriteupon
thestateoftheart.Atleast10researcharticles/reportsshouldbereadandcitationsneedtobeprovidedalongwiththe
writeup. This requires that the groups shall interact with me at least 7 days before their presentation to finalize the
contents. Final presentation and writeup should be shared with me and other students at least 24 hours before the
class.

4. Endterm:

40%


GroupPresentations
Each group will make a presentation for 20 minutes. Very thoroughly researched presentations that go beyond the
readingsprovidedinthecoursekitiswhatisexpected.Pleasenotethathalfheartedeffortswillnotdo.Itisuptothe
groupstodemonstratetheirscholarshipandcollectivewisdomtomakethepresentationslively,relevantandcount.

Group1:RelevanceofEcologicalfootprint(atindividual,firm,andsocietallevels)tobusinessdecisionmaking
Group2:LifeCycleAssessmentasastrategicdecisionmakingtool
Group3:DerivingstrategicadvantagethroughIndustrialEcology&circulareconomy
Group4:Corporateecosystemservicesreview:Addressingbusinessriskarisingfromecosystemchange
Group5:StrategicadvantagesofGreensupplychains
Group6:DoesSustainabilityinfluencecustomerpreferencesandbuyingbehavior?
Group7:Sustainabilityasastrategicfinancialdecisionmakingtool
Group8:Thechallengeofembeddingsustainabilityinorganizations:TheroleofHRMandleadership
Group9:DrivingcompetitiveadvantagethroughCSR
Group10:EmergenceofGreeneconomyasaconceptanditsrelevancetocorporatestrategy
Group11:Relevanceofsustainabilitytostrategy:emergingtrends
Group12:Buildingregional/Nationalcompetitivenessthroughsustainability

Grading
Thecoursewillfollowthegradingnormassuggestedinthestudentmanual.

Importantinstructions:
1. ThecourseinstructorwillhaveZerotolerancetowardsplagiarism.Allwrittensubmissionsandgroupprojects/ppts
shallpassthroughantiplagiarismsoftware.PlagiarismwillattractFgrade.
2. The course instructor will have Zero tolerance towards use of laptops, mobile phones, sleeping in the class,
readingsomeothercoursesmaterial,proxyattendanceetc.
3. Nostudentwillbeallowedintotheclassafterattendanceistaken.