Insight Into the Triple Bottom Line
1. Introduction
The notion of the triple bottom line has become fashionable to be applied to management, consultation and investment over the last few years. The trend towards greater transparency and accountability in public reporting is reflected in revealing a more comprehensive performance which includes not only financial factor but also social and environmental ones. Despite the trend, there are still some people in mainstream sectors are to make profit regardless of environmental and social cost, because they think there is no demand. This report seeks to define the triple bottom line and to explain the reason why the triple bottom line is playing a more and more important role in business with different examples.
2. Definition of the triple bottom line
The triple bottom line serves as reports that can show the purpose and the condition of a company. The fundamental idea of it is that a company should not only use the old-fashioned financial bottom line, but also incorporate social and environmental bottom lines into present management (MacDonald and Norman, 2004, P.20). Social and environmental bottom lines separately mean how a company has benefited society and environment for the future generations to sustain and develop themselves. In addition, Tribble (cited in Cheney, 2004, P.12) claims that irrelevant, untargeted do-good contributions, such as charity, are not included in the triple bottom line.
Sustainability concerns a suitable development of a company. The triple bottom line has the same meaning of sustainability reporting and corporate responsibility reporting (Cheney, 2004, P.14). Sustainability is defined as building satisfied results into design ahead for both the short and long terms on the triple bottom line (Smith, 2004, P.24). These satisfied results are called the triple top line (McDonough and Braungart cited in Smith, 2004, p.24).
Unfortunately, there is some obstacle to put the triple bottom line into practice. The problem
The notion of the triple bottom line has become fashionable to be applied to management, consultation and investment over the last few years. The trend towards greater transparency and accountability in public reporting is reflected in revealing a more comprehensive performance which includes not only financial factor but also social and environmental ones. Despite the trend, there are still some people in mainstream sectors are to make profit regardless of environmental and social cost, because they think there is no demand. This report seeks to define the triple bottom line and to explain the reason why the triple bottom line is playing a more and more important role in business with different examples.
2. Definition of the triple bottom line
The triple bottom line serves as reports that can show the purpose and the condition of a company. The fundamental idea of it is that a company should not only use the old-fashioned financial bottom line, but also incorporate social and environmental bottom lines into present management (MacDonald and Norman, 2004, P.20). Social and environmental bottom lines separately mean how a company has benefited society and environment for the future generations to sustain and develop themselves. In addition, Tribble (cited in Cheney, 2004, P.12) claims that irrelevant, untargeted do-good contributions, such as charity, are not included in the triple bottom line.
Sustainability concerns a suitable development of a company. The triple bottom line has the same meaning of sustainability reporting and corporate responsibility reporting (Cheney, 2004, P.14). Sustainability is defined as building satisfied results into design ahead for both the short and long terms on the triple bottom line (Smith, 2004, P.24). These satisfied results are called the triple top line (McDonough and Braungart cited in Smith, 2004, p.24).
Unfortunately, there is some obstacle to put the triple bottom line into practice. The problem
References: Cheney, G. 2004, ‘The corporate conscience and the triple bottom line’, Accounting Today, 12-25 July, PP. 12, 14. MacDonald, C., Norman, W. 2004, What’s Wrong With the “Triple Bottom Line”?, viewed July 2004,<http://www.6degrees.ca/nessletter_jul04.html>. Smith, R. L. 2004, ‘The Triple Top Line’, Quality Process, Feb, PP.23-31.