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Accounting for the social dimension of sustainability: experiences from the biotechnology industry

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  • Justus von Geibler
  • Christa Liedtke
  • Holger Wallbaum
  • Stephan Schaller

Abstract

Accounting for the social dimension of sustainability proves to be a challenge for corporate practitioners, due to its intangible, qualitative nature and lack of consensus on relevant criteria. We suggest a semi‐quantitative approach based on stakeholder involvement to identify relevant aspects for a sector specific assessment of the social dimension. Our case study on biotechnology illustrates that the dialogue with internal and external stakeholders enabled the creation of a key performance indicator (KPI) set to account for social sustainability in the early design stages of biotechnological processes and product development. Indicators for eight aspects are identified for the social assessment: health and safety, quality of working conditions, impact on employment, education and training, knowledge management, innovation potential, customer acceptance and societal product benefit, and social dialogue. We describe the integration of the KPI set in a software application, tailor made for practitioners of the sector, and highlight first user experiences. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment.

Suggested Citation

  • Justus von Geibler & Christa Liedtke & Holger Wallbaum & Stephan Schaller, 2006. "Accounting for the social dimension of sustainability: experiences from the biotechnology industry," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 15(5), pages 334-346, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:bstrat:v:15:y:2006:i:5:p:334-346
    DOI: 10.1002/bse.540
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    1. Pontus Cerin, 2002. "Characteristics of environmental reporters on the OM Stockholm exchange," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 11(5), pages 298-311, September.
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    6. Wing Chow & Yang Chen, 2012. "Corporate Sustainable Development: Testing a New Scale Based on the Mainland Chinese Context," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 105(4), pages 519-533, February.
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    8. von Geibler, Justus & Kristof, Kora & Bienge, Katrin, 2010. "Sustainability assessment of entire forest value chains: Integrating stakeholder perspectives and indicators in decision support tools," Ecological Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 221(18), pages 2206-2214.
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    14. Fritz, M. & Schiefer, G., 2009. "Sustainability in Food Networks," Proceedings “Schriften der Gesellschaft für Wirtschafts- und Sozialwissenschaften des Landbaues e.V.”, German Association of Agricultural Economists (GEWISOLA), vol. 44, March.
    15. Adam Lindgreen & Michael Antioco & David Harness & Remi Sloot, 2009. "Purchasing and Marketing of Social and Environmental Sustainability for High-Tech Medical Equipment," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 85(2), pages 445-462, April.
    16. Engelseth, Per & Sandvik, Marius, 2017. "On Complexity, Ecosystems, and Sustainability in Local Food Supply: A Case Study on Fresh Seafood Supply," International Journal on Food System Dynamics, International Center for Management, Communication, and Research, vol. 8(3), August.
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    20. Mani, Venkatesh & Gunasekaran, Angappa & Papadopoulos, Thanos & Hazen, Benjamin & Dubey, Rameshwar, 2016. "Supply chain social sustainability for developing nations: Evidence from India," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 111(C), pages 42-52.

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