Former UN Secretary General Koffi Annan characterised sustainability in a way that focuses on the positive benefits rather than the effects of ignoring it.
PURCHASING & SUPPLY BY NYASHA CHIZU
Mankind is generally compelled to comply with rules that define heavy punishment for breach. Compliance is, therefore, out of fear of punishment rather than the benefit derived from abiding. Sustainability should not be viewed as a burden, it must be viewed as an exceptional opportunity economically to build markets and create jobs, to improve lives socially bridging people from margins. This reflection brings about the desire to explore the aspects of sustainability in business.
Sustainability has multiple geographical levels. If it is ever going to be achieved, it must be done through people and their organisations at local, regional and global levels. The complication is that it is the same person and organisation that is inclined to short cut processes in order to achieve quick rewards. Simple issues such as promotion of recycling, reuse, conservation and other means of attaining sustainability are promoted by people through their living styles within their setups locally, regionally and globally.
Society is generally regulated by laws and enforcement is thereby critical to achieving the required goals. Local laws need to take into account issues of sustainability with respect to inbound logistics, safe processing methods and reverse logistics.
The old maxim that “rules are meant to be broken” brings about the desire to disregard rules for short term benefits. The mindset can be changed by rewarding sustainable business practices as much as there is punishment for breaching it. Reward increases the appetite to achieve sustainability locally, regionally and globally.
Sustainability is a journey and not a destination. Destination merely focuses on arrival where short cuts are a measure of achievement whereas the journey focuses on the route to arrive at the destination and efficiency and effectiveness come to play. Sustainability is a moving target that takes the Japanese Kaizen principle, which emphasises on continuous improvement. Sustainability is likened to human health or fitness that requires some level of therapy to achieve a certain level and some continuous routines to maintain or improve the level of health or fitness. On-going attention and adjustments are required to achieve sustainability.
With sustainability, the grass is always greener on the other side. Success is difficult to measure and failure is very easy to identify and measure. Progress on sustainability can be measured in terms of the individual, firm and national commitment to design and specify sustainability. It is unfortunately difficult to measure if sustainability was achieved given that it is a moving target.
- Chamisa under fire over US$120K donation
- Mavhunga puts DeMbare into Chibuku quarterfinals
- Pension funds bet on Cabora Bassa oilfields
- Councils defy govt fire tender directive
Keep Reading
Further, sustainability has various dimensions, control of inbound logistics through designs and specifications, control of internal manufacturing processes to be environmentally friendly and control of reverse logistics to ensure that the waste does not have adverse effects on the environment. A society or organisations can be sustainable within one area, while compromising others. Like democracy, it is much easier to tell when an organisation and society fails the sustainability test than when they achieve it.
As individuals, organisations and nations, it is important to start considering sustainability strategies within our remits now.
Nyasha Chizu is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply writing in his personal capacity. Feedback: [email protected] Skype: nyasha.chizu
