Busw 335 case study | Business & Finance homework help
Dr. Doreen McGunagle, Dr. Laura Zizka, Dr. Patti Clark, and Dr. Michael Essary (2020) Excerpted from
published case.
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Case Study
This case study analyzes the sustainability initiatives linked to the Sustainable
Development Goals (SDGs) outlined by the United Nations and specifically applied to the
airlines industry. You can choose any International airlines that you wish to analyze for this case
study. You have been hired by their leadership team to take an integrated management
approach that addresses the sustainability initiative of the company.
Overview
For a company to succeed, sustainability needs to be integrated into the strategy of the
organization. This integration can be done through the management of social, environmental, and
economic initiatives. The most sustainable companies are those with fully integrated
sustainability into their strategy, products, operations and marketing. Embedding sustainability
into a company’s strategy and operations deliver a value for people, planet and the bottom-line.
In today’s complex environment, the growing environmental and social challenges, corporate
strategy and management needs to build a more sustainable and successful organization. The
Sustainability Development Goals (SDGs) offer targets that assist uncover new value creation
and value propositions on how the organization can provide products and services to your
customers (UN Sustainable Development Goals, 2019).
Sustainable Development Goals
Sustainability is a strategy that can help organizations meet the current needs without
compromising the needs of future generations (United Nations, 1987). In 2015, the Sustainable
Development Goals (SDGs) set a global agenda that has been adopted by many countries. The
Dr. Doreen McGunagle, Dr. Laura Zizka, Dr. Patti Clark, and Dr. Michael Essary (2020) Excerpted from
published case.
vision of SDGs is to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure that all people enjoy peace and
prosperity. As part of their strategy, organizations can use SDGs in sustainable development that
aligns with their goals (Chakravorti, 2017).
There are seventeen goals that were proposed by the UN. The SDG goals include: end
poverty, zero hunger, promote health and well-being, Quality education, Gender equality,
Sustainable management of water and sanitation, Access to sustainable energy, Full and
productive employment, Sustainable industry that fosters innovation, Reduce inequality,
sustainable cities, Sustainable consumption and production, Combat climate change, Use of
marine resources for sustainable development, Protect and promote sustainable terrestrial
ecosystems, promote peaceful inclusive society, and Global Partnership for sustainable
development (United Nations, 2015). While meeting all 17 SDGs is the ideal situation, a more
realistic option is to link some of the most pertinent SDGs to specific industries, in this case, the
airline industry. In this manner, industries have a starting place to begin implementing the SDGs
without the pressure of trying to address all SDGs at one time. Table 16 shows the 7 SDGs most
suitable for the airline industry. These SDGs are representative of the three sustainability pillars.
Table 16
SDGs for Aviation Industry
Social 5
Gender
Equality
Promote gender equality in the workforce by hiring
more women in male dominated jobs. Commit to gender
pay parity.
Social 10
Reduced
Inequalities
Promote culture of diversity, maintain supplier
diversity, facilitate cultural understanding, provide
travel for those disabled or have medical conditions
Economic 8
Decent Work
and Economic
Growth
Rank high on national lists for employee engagement,
provide competitive benefits and compensation, share
profits with employees, invest in employee training and
development
Dr. Doreen McGunagle, Dr. Laura Zizka, Dr. Patti Clark, and Dr. Michael Essary (2020) Excerpted from
published case.
Economic 9
Industry
Innovation
and
Infrastructure
Invest in innovative technology, enhance safety, and
customer experience
Environmental 7
Affordable
and Clean
Energy
Increase share of renewable energy, foreign direct
investments in infrastructure and technology to
sustainable development
Environmental 12
Responsible
Consumption
and
Production
Work with suppliers to increase efficiency of aircraft,
recycling inflight, domestic and global locations,
comply with regulations on air quality, aircraft drinking
and waste
Environmental 13
Climate
Action
Reduce carbon emissions, improve fuel efficiency,
support alternative aviation fuels
Source: United Nations, 2015
Develop a global social impact report that outlines the following:
1. Overview of company that includes current mission & vision statements
2. Create a new vision for sustainability, environmental, and community engagement
3. Develop a mapping of the operations using a minimum of 4 SDGs
4. Current Sustainability Initiatives of the airlines
5. Economic analysis, see examples of topics from table 1
6. Social analysis, see examples of topics from table 1
7. Environmental analysis, see examples of topics from table 1
Table 1 Examples of topics for social impact report
Economic
Community
donations
Integrated
sustainability and
financial reporting
proportion of senior
management hired
from local
community
social cost of carbon
(SCC)
Social
access to services by
the disabled or poor
anti-sexual
harassment policy
antitrust practices
approach to
stakeholder
engagement
employee relations
employee
training/development
board diversity
Charitable donations
community outreach
Environmental
Air pollution
Affordable and clean
energy
Reduction of energy
consumption
Reduction of air
emissions
Environmental
friendly designs
Recycling
Dr. Doreen McGunagle, Dr. Laura Zizka, Dr. Patti Clark, and Dr. Michael Essary (2020) Excerpted from
published case.
Impacts on local
culture
Skills management
programs life-long
learning
Supplier diversity
Support for
community services
References
Chakravorti, B. (2017) How companies can champion sustainable develop. Harvard Business
Review. Reprint H0319V, published on HBR.org on March 14, 2017. Retrieved from
https://hbr.org/2017/03.
Sustainable Development Goals (2019) Knowledge platform. Retrieved from
https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/sdgs
United Nations (1987) Our Common Future: The Brundtland Report. Retrieved from
https://www.are.admin.ch/are/en/home/sustainable-development/international-
cooperation/2030agenda/un-_-milestones-in-sustainable-development/1987–brundtland-
report.html
United Nations (2015) Transforming our world: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
Retrieved from
https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/content/documents/21252030%20Agenda%20for
%20Sustainable%20Development%20web.pdf