Measuring and Controlling Sustainability: Spanning Theory and Practice

This new book is a very welcome addition to the international literature on CSR performance and measurement. The book presents a lively and broad variety of approaches to CSR measurement and impact which allows readers to obtain a more comprehensive and in-depth understanding of this important topic. The book is particularly relevant at a time when many CSR academics and practitioners are concerned about whether CSR claims can indeed be back up by sufficient empirical evidence. I strongly recommend the book to students, practitioners, and academics interested in reflecting more deeply on-going CSR developments and debates . - Dr. Peter Lund-Thomsen, Professor in Corporate Social Responsibility in Developing Countries, Copenhagen Business School

The idea that `If you can measure it, you can manage it' is often associated with the great management guru Peter Drucker, but as an idea it can be traced back at least to the 1500s and Rheticus. When sustainability moved from the fringes of the debate in management scholarship and practice towards the mainstream in the late 1980s, there was a widespread perception that it was somehow a `soft' set of issues, difficult to get to grips with. This book demonstrates how far we have come in the last 30 years in recognising sustainability as a very `hard' set of issues, both in the sense of being challenging to tackle, and in having very direct and measurable impacts on all aspects of business organisations. The 17 chapters in this book combine to demonstrate how the challenge of measuring and managing sustainability varies across different types of organisation, and cuts across traditional disciplinary boundaries. For those wishing to understand the vital importance of managing sustainability issues, and how to do it effectively in ways that protect the value of companies, their brands and their contribution to society, this book will be invaluable. - Prof. Ken Peattie, Head of Marketing and Strategy Section, Cardiff University

For organizations wanting to gain and maintain a competitive edge in today's marketplace, corporate sustainability is a necessary practice. This collection of chapters puts forward a comprehensive view of challenges in connection with the sustainable value-creation process and of opportunities resulting from innovations in this process. Written in an accessible language, this anthology offers a fine mix of theoretical, integrative, and empirical perspectives on key dimensions in sustainability. As such, the anthology represents an important resource for researchers, as well as a source of key insights and inspiration for practitioners willing to engage strategically with sustainability questions and ideas. - Prof. Valerie Swaen, Louvain School of Management, Universite catholique de Louvain