PROJECT MANAGEMENT

Sustainability In Project Management

Sustainability In Project Management

Introduction

Even use and disposal, which have traditionally been considered consumer issues, are strongly influenced by decisions made during the design phase. In this way, a company dictates the energy use of its products during operation, their health effects on users, and their ease of recycling or remanufacturing.

Most businesses are not directly involved in the manufacturing process and the environmental impact of their products may be unapparent to management as well as customers. Savvy businesses know, however, that the responsibility for their products begins when they are conceived, designed, and ordered.

This sets in motion a cascade of events that includes resource extraction, transportation, production, packaging, distribution, sales, consumer use, and disposal. Each step in the process has its associated environmental ills, and a conscientious company would be expected to account for all of them.( Kraus, 1997)

Discussion

Before rushing out to identify possible certification firms, it is important that a company assess the various certification schemes that exist and develop a code of conduct that describes the values it is seeking in a socially responsible supply chain. After an exhaustive vetting process, Starbucks decided to develop its own C.A.F.E. standards because it did not feel that any of the certification schemes went far enough.

Besides its inherent moral value, sustainable supply chain management has direct business benefits that must be clearly communicated to doubtful employees and managers. Chief among these are the public relations benefits of developing a positive brand identity and the reduction in risk that such a strategy provides. Shell Oil took quite a pounding when the public found out it planned to sink the Brent Spar in the Atlantic, and it took many years for its image to recover.

Especially for companies that re developing a sustainable supply chain strategy due to ...