Is HR and Sustainability Implied or Applied (At Your Current Employer)??? THINK ABOUT IT...

There are three main pillars of sustainability. Work-life-balance which includes growing importance of professional career as well as growing importance of private and family life. Individual responsibility which consists of increased autonomy and self determination in questions of professional development. Lastly, employability which focuses on continuous development and professional agility rather than specific activity.¹ I would agree completely with this theory. This theory is something that I practice on a daily basis because I was introduced to this particular concept by my current employer, Hewlett Packard. Close on the heels of the maturing discipline of business ethics, the related areas of corporate social responsibility and sustainability are emerging as business imperatives.²

Whether looking at hiring, developing, planning for succession and long-term workforce sustainability, or even scheduling a contingent workforce at a retail store, the ability to understand where the organization is going, and defining the competencies (i.e. skills, knowledge and/or behaviors) required to get there will be critical. Only by having this clear picture will leaders be able to ensure that their talent initiatives are designed to produce the talent required to move the business forward.³

HR’s efforts to develop sustainable business practices such as equitable employment practices can have the positive effect of improving employee morale, increasing employee engagement and productivity, and improving retention by making the organization an employer of choice. Being an ethical, socially responsible company can attract investors, customers and top talent—and help ward off government regulators and environmental and labor activists.⁴ In a broad sense, a sustainable corporation can be described as one that achieves economic profit, maintains environmental quality and contributes to increased social equity.⁵

^Sources:

^{1.) http://web.ebscohost.com.library.esc.edu/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=e2a14bf3-dab2-431e-a327-d7aff9aa7e22%40sessionmgr104&vid=2&hid=123}

^{2.) http://www.shrm.org/hrdisciplines/ethics/Pages/EthicsIntro.aspx}

^{3.) http://www.taleo.com/sites/default/files/analyst-aberdeen-2011-hr-executive-agenda.PDF}

^{4.) http://www.shrm.org/hrdisciplines/ethics/Pages/EthicsIntro.aspx}

^{5.) http://wk4ky4tk9h.search.serialssolutions.com.library.esc.edu/?sid=EBSCO:Business+Source+Complete&genre=article&title=Industrial+%26+Commercial+Training&atitle=Role+of+HR+in+the+new+world+of+sustainability.&author=Rimanoczy%2c+Isabel&authors=Rimanoczy%2c+Isabel%3bPearson%2c+Tony&date=20100101&volume=42&issue=1&spage=11&issn=00197858}