Is Your Business Sustainable?

And just what is a sustainable business anyway? We are certainly going to hear more variations on this over the next few years from a variety of interest groups. Sustainability means totally different things to different people.

A sustainable business keeps on going without drama, it makes a sensible profit and provides a good lifestyle for everyone who works there, including the owner. If the owner is overworked and stressed in their business, this is hardly sustainable.

The young woman who served me in the local supermarket barely looked at me and looked thoroughly dissinterested. Apart from taking my money she barely acknowledged my presence. Doesn't she realise that customers are the people who pay her wages? Does she want her job to continue?

This is a real take home message for business - customers pay the wages and make sure all your staff realise that and treat your customers in a way that makes them want to come back. This is what quality management or ISO 9001 is all about. It is about proactivly caring for customers so that they are not lost due to poor product or service.

Dramas and lifestyle problems in a business happen when staff make errors and customers are unhappy, the workplace is not safe and your people are injured or stressed, regulators arrive because you have breached regulations you and your people knew nothing about and power bills keep going up because among other things you find you are actually wasting a lot of your expensive energy.

So many things can cause a business to be unsustainable including human error and careless decisions. We even see very successful sports stars making their business of sport unsustainable because of their poor decisions (think prominent football and golf examples).

Sustainable business practices are what keep your business running profitably. These practices include: • really listening to your clients so that they want to continue buying from you, • building a good image and reputation so that you attract the clients you need • looking after the health and welfare of your greatest asset - your staff, • being aware of your legal requirements and making sure that your staff training and procedures prevent people accidentally breaching legislation, • reducing waste energy and materials and avoiding other environmental damage • proactively being aware of changing conditions, and of course they include managing your finances.

We have all heard the old adage 'Failing to plan is planning to fail' - it is so true. The secret to building a sustainable business is to identify all your activities, assess where you have risks then plan to manage those risks. This way you can prevent damaging errors, build in resilience and have a business that continues into a profitable future.

Why continue to put your business at risk because of lack of real planning when a simple, effective and almost paperless would help your business to be sustainable? You will find that sustainable business practices prevent problems, increase your profits and give you access to tenders and an improved image. Many businesses choose a fully integrated ISO management system that includes heir quality, ISO 9001, safety, AS/NZS 4801 and environmental management, ISO 14001 because this covers more than one risk area.

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