By: Chadel Zayas S.
Conceived as a new genetics for companies, the triple impact was a concept coined 25 years ago by John Elkington, with the purpose of inducing a change in the capitalism of the future (already emerging), expanding the market and making it a participant in the solutions to social and environmental problems.
"The triple impact (in English Triple Bottom Line or 3P', people, planet, profit), is a sustainability framework that examines and takes into consideration the social, environmental and economic impact of a company."
Some of the aspects involved in the triple impact variables are indicated below:
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- People (society): the positive and negative impact that an organization has on its most important stakeholders (employees, families, customers, suppliers, communities and any other person who influences or is affected by the organization).⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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- Planet: the positive and negative impact that an organization has on its natural environment (reducing its carbon footprint, the use of natural resources, toxic materials, etc., but also the active removal of waste, reforestation and restoration of damage natural caused).⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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- Profit (Prosperity): the positive and negative impact that an organization has on the local, national and international economy (job creation, the generation of innovation, the payment of taxes, the creation of wealth and any other economic impact that an organization has ).⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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In the exercise of operations and business models of Latin American companies, we highlight good practices that generate material positive impact or reduce the negative impact on the aforementioned triple impact variables and that can be taken into consideration when thinking in the implementation of continuous improvement of the impact of companies. We indicate some of these good practices, classified by impact areas:
Governance:
- Transparency: Sending data reports to members of the parent board and all teams, with the purpose of reporting all progress and how to reach goals.
Workers:
- Programs for workers that teach about waste, water and energy management in homes; as well as regular updating, motivation, technical improvement and professionalization courses for its employees at all hierarchical levels.
- Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP).
- Formal policies on internal satisfaction surveys to measure the level of internal satisfaction and happiness. Meditation programs, language courses, 2-hour lunches, blood donation campaign.
Consumers:
- Products and services in favor of the community, specifically needed, that when acquired contribute to the improvement of the quality of life, especially the nutrition, health and education of families.
- Alliances with companies and non-profit organizations to provide products that contribute to solving their problems.
Environment:
- Products with packaging with replacement and/or made of recycled glass.
It is vital to consider that the aforementioned list constitutes more than an enunciation, since the highlighted qualities regarding good practices respond to the formalization of internal policies and the support of their implementation through the relevant documentation generated as a consequence, which allows adequate verification of the materialization of the impact generated and demonstrates the degree of commitment on the part of the company.
In these regards, when venturing into the integration of good practices related to triple impact, it is advisable to initially identify which practices are used by the company, verify if these are formalized through the corresponding documentation and update the compliance criteria. with standards related to the company's industry.
Sources:
- Sistema B, Proqualitass, CAF y Fomin, “Ejemplos de buenas prácticas de Empresas B de Latinoamérica”.
- Kraaijenbrink, Jeroen, “What The 3Ps Of The Triple Bottom Line Really Mean”, https://www.forbes.com/sites/jeroenkraaijenbrink/