Preface
Corporate failure is typically a reflection of ineffective corporate governance and the lack of focus on sustainability performance. Events significant enough to bring down high-profile companies (AIG, Bear Stern, Societe Generale, and Olympus) do not happen overnight and often relate to lack of sustainability performance. In a message to shareholders in the 2012 Annual meeting, the president and CEO of Starbucks underscores the importance of business sustainability in creating value for all stakeholders including shareholders, customers, and communities. This book presents recent developments in sustainability performance and sustainability reporting and assurance. Business organizations are key contributors to sustainability performance to ensure long-term sustainable development of the economy and society. In this context, sustainability reporting and the assurance process in collecting, analyzing, and disclosing sustainability performance is important. The concept of business sustainability and corporate accountability has become an overriding factor in successful strategic planning for many organizations worldwide. Business sustainability is a process of increasing the positive impacts and reducing negative effects of operations on sustainable economic, social and environmental performance. The idea is that an organization must extend its focus beyond making profit by considering the impact of its operation on the community, society, and the environment. The concept ...
