Robert Sroufe – författare

The last decade has seen increasing awareness of the importance of understanding corporate environmental management systems (EMSs) and their relationships with sustainability, competitiveness and institutional practice. It is now assumed that most large companies have some version of an EMS in place with systems ranging from informal policies and practices to formalised third-party certified systems that are widely publicized by companies and are now integral to their strategic direction. No matter what level and type of system a firm chooses, both practitioners and researchers wish to examine and better understand the extent to which these systems are cross-functional, how they impact on performance evaluation, their capability to monitor supply chains and the life-cycles of products and services and, most importantly, whether these systems actually make a contribution to better environmental performance. This book provides intriguing insights into strategic and sustainable EMSs. It provides clear evidence of benefits that should exceed the costs (tangible and otherwise), and help practitioners understand the attributes of well-developed and strategically focused EMSs. It also demonstrates the link to performance measures such as reputation, improved position in the marketplace, cost, quality, waste reduction and numerous sustainable development-based metrics and issues. The comprehensive scope of topics spans several industries and provides environmental systems insight involving sustainable management systems, strategic and operational impacts of environmental systems, cross-country comparisons of EMS design processes and results, product-based environmental systems, EMS impacts at innovative organisations and environmental systems integration within specific industries. The book is split into three sections. First, the book covers the broad issues of planning and designing an EMS and includes topics such as performance evaluation, comparisons between multinational environmental systems, sustainable development and links between already established quality systems and an EMS. The second section focuses on EMS implementation and operation and incorporates some corporate or industry-specific case studies. The third and final category of the book highlights the use of an EMS to evaluate business processes. Strategic Sustainability will be essential reading for both managers faced with decisions regarding their own EMSs and to researchers seeking additional insights from state-of-the-art examples for further theoretical development and testing.

The last decade has seen increasing awareness of the importance of understanding corporate environmental management systems (EMSs) and their relationships with sustainability, competitiveness and institutional practice. It is now assumed that most large companies have some version of an EMS in place with systems ranging from informal policies and practices to formalised third-party certified systems that are widely publicized by companies and are now integral to their strategic direction. No matter what level and type of system a firm chooses, both practitioners and researchers wish to examine and better understand the extent to which these systems are cross-functional, how they impact on performance evaluation, their capability to monitor supply chains and the life-cycles of products and services and, most importantly, whether these systems actually make a contribution to better environmental performance. This book provides intriguing insights into strategic and sustainable EMSs. It provides clear evidence of benefits that should exceed the costs (tangible and otherwise), and help practitioners understand the attributes of well-developed and strategically focused EMSs. It also demonstrates the link to performance measures such as reputation, improved position in the marketplace, cost, quality, waste reduction and numerous sustainable development-based metrics and issues. The comprehensive scope of topics spans several industries and provides environmental systems insight involving sustainable management systems, strategic and operational impacts of environmental systems, cross-country comparisons of EMS design processes and results, product-based environmental systems, EMS impacts at innovative organisations and environmental systems integration within specific industries. The book is split into three sections. First, the book covers the broad issues of planning and designing an EMS and includes topics such as performance evaluation, comparisons between multinational environmental systems, sustainable development and links between already established quality systems and an EMS. The second section focuses on EMS implementation and operation and incorporates some corporate or industry-specific case studies. The third and final category of the book highlights the use of an EMS to evaluate business processes. Strategic Sustainability will be essential reading for both managers faced with decisions regarding their own EMSs and to researchers seeking additional insights from state-of-the-art examples for further theoretical development and testing.

We are now coming to realize that the supply chain is no stronger than its weakest link. The second development is that of sustainability. This is more than simply being environmentally responsible. Rather, it is overall sustainability as measured in terms of the firm's ability to reduce waste, improve profitability, generating strategic competitive advantages, and ensure that it treats its employees well. Sustainability is increasingly becoming at a minimum an expectation and a requirement for doing business (i.e., an order qualifier) and under many conditions something that differentiates firms and makes them more attractive to potential critical consumers (i.e., an order winner). These two developments, while often treated as separate entities, are interrelated. It is this interrelationship that forms the major focus and thrust of this book.

This book presents the reader with an integrated, business oriented treatment of sustainable supply chain management that explores why it is no longer enough for a firm to focus on sustainability within the four walls of the firm. Rather, in today's environment, sustainability must involve the supply chain in a deliberate and integrated fashion. To succeed with sustainability, a firm must ensure that this outcome is not only present within the firm but is also present within the supply chain. As the book will show, the market and consumers will punish those firms that promise sustainability but are not able to deliver on this promise because of problems in the supply chain.

Today’s solutions are social and technical. We have the technical feasibility; it’s already in place and evolving. The social will to create new norms involves systems thinking and analytics to tackle one of the biggest opportunities of our time, “sustainable development.” Integrated management comes when we realise a decision’s impacts go well beyond a single bottom line and single functional perspective. Integrated management can be measured across functions, firms, and value chains in multidimensional ways. 

This book starts by suggesting a new vision of a performance frontier beyond using sustainability terminology. Integrated management allows us to rethink functions, enterprises, and systems dynamics to reduce waste and create value. Critical drivers and enablers provide decision-makers and policymakers with ways to take on complex problems. As larger systems-level problems are addressed and disassembled into smaller systems within systems, every enterprise can contribute to and have a vision for its own sustainable future. With the application of a strategic sustainable development framework, strategic planning, and backcasting from your vision, readers will find integrated management opportunities and manage change toward success. 

Integrated Management: How Sustainability Creates Value for any Business is for decision-makers and lifelong students globally who want to integrate sustainability into business strategy and management practices.  Endorsed by practitioners, thought leaders, academics, and change agents, this second edition builds on the success of the first edition. It includes more evidence of integration already underway at multinational companies'' operational, tactical, and strategic level practices. Within each chapter, readers can take new highlight actions to enable change and build on best practices. The company examples, frameworks, methods, and action learning approach serve as a roadmap as you navigate across enterprises and interconnected systems to create your vision and action plan for the future.

Today’s solutions are social and technical. We have the technical feasibility; it’s already in place and evolving. The social will to create new norms involves systems thinking and analytics to tackle one of the biggest opportunities of our time, “sustainable development.” Integrated management comes when we realise a decision’s impacts go well beyond a single bottom line and single functional perspective. Integrated management can be measured across functions, firms, and value chains in multidimensional ways. 

This book starts by suggesting a new vision of a performance frontier beyond using sustainability terminology. Integrated management allows us to rethink functions, enterprises, and systems dynamics to reduce waste and create value. Critical drivers and enablers provide decision-makers and policymakers with ways to take on complex problems. As larger systems-level problems are addressed and disassembled into smaller systems within systems, every enterprise can contribute to and have a vision for its own sustainable future. With the application of a strategic sustainable development framework, strategic planning, and backcasting from your vision, readers will find integrated management opportunities and manage change toward success. 

Integrated Management: How Sustainability Creates Value for any Business is for decision-makers and lifelong students globally who want to integrate sustainability into business strategy and management practices.  Endorsed by practitioners, thought leaders, academics, and change agents, this second edition builds on the success of the first edition. It includes more evidence of integration already underway at multinational companies'' operational, tactical, and strategic level practices. Within each chapter, readers can take new highlight actions to enable change and build on best practices. The company examples, frameworks, methods, and action learning approach serve as a roadmap as you navigate across enterprises and interconnected systems to create your vision and action plan for the future.