Corporate Sustainability

Corporate Sustainability System: The Triple Bottom Line

How we deal with the planet while we make a living in our short journey has a significant impact on the next generation!

Corporate sustainability has become a buzzword in both large and small companies.

Sustainability is often defined as meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet theirs. This concept acknowledges that Earth's resources are limited, so we should protect our home and keep it safe for future generations. This is only achievable with the collective efforts of people and businesses around the world doing their part.

Triple Bottom Line

Coined in 1994 by corporate responsibility strategist John Elkington, the Triple Bottom Line is still gaining popularity. It has become part of everyday business language to assess their profits through their corporate sustainability solutions.

The "Triple Bottom Line" (also known as the 3Ps, TBL, or 3BL) is an accounting framework that incorporates three dimensions: Social, Environmental and Economic. These three pillars are informally referred to as people, planet, and profits.

The Social bottom line highlights a business's societal impact or its commitment to people. For example, when we have fair and beneficial labor practices, corporate community involvement, and the impact of your business activities on the local economy.

The Environmental bottom line is concerned with making a positive impact on the planet. Companies may focus on reducing their carbon footprints, packaging waste, water usage, and their overall effect on the environment.

The Economic bottom line has to be viewed as the actual impact (in financial terms) not just on the business itself but also on its economic environment. It is indisputable that for a company to be sustainable, it must be profitable.

Why is the Triple Bottom Line important?

As a planet, we are currently facing some challenges - including climate change, poverty, and inequality - that threaten life on Earth. Protecting our planet for future generations is vital, and corporate sustainability is a must for growing a successful business that nurtures planet preservation.

Changing the way we do business is essential to addressing the challenges of today's world.

The triple bottom line concept encompasses this trend, capturing the need to recognize, measure, and report, value societal and environmental performance beyond the purely financial factors.

The triple bottom line concept encompasses this trend, which captures the need to recognize, measure, and report on corporate performance in ways other than financial factors.

So, how can we develop business models for startups and new ventures that are innovative and consider the sustainability of our planet and the triple bottom line!

This article was written by Sandra Ferreira as part of Moe’s Consulting team.