Sustainable organizational models a.k.a. The Holy the Grail of organizational management

Well sustainable organizational models are de facto are those specifically designed to  balance out the interest of all stakeholders being involved:

·       the shareholders which most of the time (just not to say all the time) are looking after growth;

·       the employees who are also after their own personal development, trajectory  , work gratification and remuneration ( those can really come in any order for each individual employee)

·       the clients and consumers which (sometimes, not always not at all) consume base on values.

So in order to check all of those boxes organizations have to take a long hard look at how they operate and structure to themselves to balance out interests which don’t always align sometimes mutually exclusive and above all tackle/offset difference through communication and authentic leadership (yep, that one more on that in section Coaching)

Despite being interconnected, the notion of a Sustainable Organizational Structure is often confused with the nature of the organization's business. While an organization may not adhere to established sustainability practices across its production value chain, it can still ,howbeit more difficult, cultivate a culture and shape an internal organizational framework that promotes sustainable growth and employee development while catering to the company’s financial goals.

A significant gap between running a non-sustainable business while trying to foster a sustainable organizational culture can cause issues with authenticity and external perception of the company values.

Organizations need to balance out and bridge significant difference originating from their broader ecosystem. When looking at their organizational structure and process they need to consider all relevant ecosystems

(Sánchez-García, 2021)

The Internal context for sustainability include mission statement, objectives, leadership styles, and its organizational culture, organization’s operating environment, as well as

·       Policies for sustainability whether linked to the companies CSR policy or main business activity.

·       Capabilities & their evolution and development – resources and knowledge (e.g. capital, people, processes and systems)

·       Decision-making processes including sense making and knowledge management

·       Systems adapted by the organization centered on the plan-do-check-act model

·       Organization’s contractual relationships that enforces adherence by a supplier or partner to the organizations code of conduct  (Choudhury, 2016)

Addressing all of those areas and aligning them towards a coherent vision requires a cross functional approach and long-term strategy being executed simultaneously top-down and bottom-up.

References

Choudhury, D. D. (2016). SUSTAINABLE ORGANIZATION AND OPERATIONAL IMPACT. International Journal of Management (IJM).

Jeffrey H. Greenhaus1, a. E. (2014 Volume 1). The Contemporary Career: A Work–Home Perspective. Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior.

Sánchez-García, B. H.-S. (2021). Sustainable Organizations - Models, Applications, and New Perspectives. IntechOpen.