Triple Bottom Line Management Concept with John Elkington

John is one of the world’s leading authorities on sustainable development and developed the ‘triple bottom line’ business strategy. He is the author or co-author of 50 published reports, thousands of articles, and 19 books, including the no. 1 bestselling The Green Consumer Guide (1988).

In this Episode, The Following Topics are Discussed:

2019 is the 25th anniversary of the TBL
People — Planet — Profit
Accounting vs Purpose
System change — not the accounting
Double entry bookkeeping
6000 companies are engaging in sustainability reporting
Branding and advertising — misleading with green
HBR says this is first time any management concept has been recalled
Social entrepreneurs
TBL is not intended to be a mechanism to support tradeoffs
Improve on two dimensions, and holding the third constant
Tomorrow’s capitalism inquiry — Aviva Investors
Crowdsourcing the revamp — using technology to communicate more widely
How does shared value link to the TBL
Competing language is a glorious alibi to do nothing at all
What lies on the horizon for the revamp?We need framework and tools that drives business in ways that we have not seen yet
Look at leadership companies, like Unilever, and explore what
TBL thinking has delivered in their businesses. (Revamp 1)
CEO must be on board
The evolution of B2B platforms — Paul Polman — look at B2B platforms and look at what is working and what is not — do we need multiple platforms? (Revamp 2)
The role of government and policy makers
Financial markets through the lenses of the CFO and the tie to sustainabilty (Revamp 3)
Larry Fink at BlackRock, “Society is demanding that companies, both public and private, serve a social purpose. To prosper over time, every company must not only deliver financial performance, but also show how it makes a positive contribution to society.”
Avoiding the label of environmentalist
John as an agitator —
‘Playfulness’ as an indicator of flexibility and embracing change?
OECD: 80 -90% of companies know a sustainability commitment is necessary
Corporate culture —
The term greenwashing — safety and health diversity are easy to claim, but a CEO saying it is different than real results— someone at Board level must be directly responsible for performance
Climate change, human rights, communicating TBL to Wall Street → learning journeys
The sort of company that does TBL reporting and brand activism
Comparing 1970’s corporate leadership to today
SDGs
The word ’sustainability’ and it being perceived as something bad
A pending financial crash
Dirty industries proclaiming sustainability — and the need to call out ranking without looking at what goes on behind the scenes
The need to disrupt the ranking industry
Provoking or calling out bad corporate behavior
Incremental change is boring — disruption or civilizational change is more fascinating and engaging
When words or phrases first appear they are like membranes — new concepts that engage — the more a term is used it becomes less engaging
The forecast that the SDGs will equal 12T in opportunity — dissecting the number — skepticism and forecasts
We have moved from looking at sustainability as an impediment and viewing it as an opportunity and instrument for transformation
Big brands that disappear
Paradigm shifts