Sustainability Standards and Instruments Book Reviews

Sustainability Standards and Instruments by Alan S. Gutterman Book Summary

Academics, policymakers, business people, members of civil society and individuals have all recognized the significant effect the activities of the private sector have on employees, customers, communities, the environment, competitors, business partners, investors, shareholders, governments and others. It is also becoming increasingly clear that firms can contribute to their own wealth and to overall societal wealth by considering the effect they have on the world at large when making decisions and take operational actions to execute their strategies.  All of this has led to growing interest in "corporate social responsibility", or "CSR", which has been described as the way that firms integrate social, environmental and economic concerns into their values, culture, decision making, strategy and operations in a transparent and accountable manner and thereby establish better practices within the firm, create wealth and improve society. 

The commitments and activities associated with any CSR initiative should begin with compliance with laws and regulations promulgated by the governmental entities have jurisdiction over the firm's activities; however, CSR extends well "beyond the law" to include important subjects as to which the law has not been able to keep.  As a result, voluntary corporate responsibility standards developed from a variety of sources have emerged to fill the gap in areas such as corporate governance and ethics; health and safety; environmental stewardship; human rights (including core labor rights); sustainable development; working conditions (including safety and health, hours of work, wages); industrial relations; community involvement, development and investment; involvement of and respect for diverse cultures and disadvantaged peoples; corporate philanthropy and employee volunteering; consumer issues, customer satisfaction and adherence to principles of fair competition; anti-bribery and anti-corruption measures; accountability, transparency and performance reporting; and supplier relations, for both domestic and international supply chains. 

There has been a proliferation of transnational, voluntary standards for what constitutes responsible corporate action including standards have been developed by states, public/private partnerships, multi-stakeholder negotiation processes, industries and companies, institutional investors, functional groups such as accountancy firms and social assurance consulting groups, non-governmental organizations ("NGOs") and non-financial ratings agencies. The process of creating, implementing and monitoring private CSR initiatives allows and encourages dialogue and debate among various actors including businesses, business associations, public authorities, trade unions, intergovernmental organizations and NGOs.  However, while all of this activity is valuable and worthwhile, the sheer volume of initiatives can be daunting and firms must be prepared to search and select from a broad menu that includes corporate codes of conduct, multi-stakeholder initiatives, certification and labeling initiatives (including reporting), model codes, sectoral initiatives, international framework agreements and socially responsible investment initiatives. 

This book is intended to serve as an introduction to sustainability standards and instruments and includes chapters on initiatives of governmental and intergovernmental bodies, sectoral CSR commitments, CSR-related reporting and management standards and securities exchanges and regulators.  The book also provides information on CSR-related nonprofits and NGOs that readers can use as resources for broadening their understanding of private sector activities relating to CSR and sustainability.

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