Introduction
Sustainability is a key issue facing most businesses today no matter their size or position in the market. Business sustainability is a key concept of business management today. In its simplest term, sustainability is an action plan by a business that focuses on the social, economic and environmental impact of its activities to guarantee its continued prosperity. It is necessary for businesses enterprises to embrace sustainability. In this paper, I will delve into the topic of business sustainability. In particular, I will examine the emerging concepts of sustainability in business management, the topic of corporate responsibility and environmental compliance. In my discussion, I will focus on the Nissan Motor Corporation in Japan as a case study into sustainability.
Case Study
The case study under examination is the Nissan Company. This is a leading automotive company in Japan that has its roots in the Jidosha Seizo Company, the first company established for the mass production of automotive in Japan by Aikawa Yoshisuke. The Nissan Company has always been focused on sustainability (Schmidt & Levi, 2013). This is seen in the company’s supply chain structure which is in line with the company’s culture of flexibility.
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On March 2011, the operations of the company were greatly affected when a 9.0 magnitude earthquake hit Japan. The Company suffered major damage as six of its production plants were damaged. The question of sustainability immediately cropped up for the company. Many were asking how the company would deal with this major environmental tragedy (Schmidt & Levi, 2013). Knowing and very well aware of the concept of sustainability, the company had drafted an earthquake emergency-response plan. In the aftermath of the earthquake, the company’s Global Disaster Control Division set up a recovery committee to access the damage and how the operations of the company could be restored. This reaction was a testament that Nissan had an elaborate sustainability plan.
Theories and Techniques
There are various theories and techniques of sustainability. Among the theories are Just-in-time (JIT), TPS and lean.
Lean
Lean is one of the concepts of sustainability that involves the use of systematic methods to reduce costs in companies by eliminating wastes and activities which do not add value to a company while taking into consideration the customer's requirement s and needs. Toyota is one of the renowned world brands that has effectively used the concept to attain world-class manufacturing status (Wandinga, 2013). This concept of sustainability is advantageous to the Nissan case and is well seen in one of the measures to enhance recovery adopted after the disaster. After the earthquake, the sales, marketing, and regional supply chain team established that supply of integrated Global Positioning System (GPS) was constrained by the disaster. Guided by this information, the company identified which car models required GPS systems based on customers need and allocated resources accordingly. The disadvantage of the concept in the scenario is that it that it would have led to an assumption and grouping consumers into one group.
JIT
The JIT is a Japanese lean production technique which is conscious on timing in the manufacturing process. It is informed by the knowledge that both storing and waiting for materials in a company increases costs considerably leading to further expenses. The theory involves ensuring materials are delivered at the appropriate time when they are needed .Similarly, the outputs must be transported in time to avoid waiting and storage costs.JIT works as a part of the lean strategy and focuses on continuous improvement. Moreover, it also aims at reducing working capital needs for companies by allowing only for few materials to be held at any time. The JIT technique would be applicable in the case and would aid the company reduce on storage and transport costs during the disaster. This technique is seen in the decision of the recovery committee charged with bringing Nissan on its feet. The management monitored in-transit inventory in their networks and slowed down production upstream and downstream.
TPS
The Toyota Production System (TPS) is a production system founded on the philosophy of zero waste during manufacturing. The anchoring TPS concepts are the visualizing of the problem and productivity improvement. The former emphasizes that quality must be ingrained during production. If a defect is detected, then it must be attended to first before production can continue. The Japanese use the word jidoka for this which implies that should quality concerns arise in the chain of production, the machine should detect the deficiency and automatically halt production. The latter means that quality product is only produced through the complete elimination of waste, inconsistencies and unreasonable requirements on the production line. This system would have been inapplicable in the case because some of the effects of the disaster on the company were beyond the control of anyone.
The three concepts above are highly interrelated because they all focus on the reduction of wastes during production and manufacturing hence helping firms to save on costs. They eliminate wastes that occur through transportation, inventory, over processing, queues and defective parts.
Triple Bottom Line
The Triple Bottom Line (TBL) approach is an accounting framework that measures sustainability in organizations. This framework goes beyond the traditional measure of profits and returns on investment and also takes into consideration environmental and social dimensions which are captured in the modern sustainability concept (Slaper &Hall, n.d).TBL is key in enhancing operation management in organizations since it provides social, economic and environmental measures upon which operations in the organization can be gauged. The main concepts of TBL are the people, planet, and profit. Regarding people, the framework states that organizations which follow the framework should critically think of the impact of their activities on the people involved. Everyone’s welfare is catered for. Such organizations go a step ahead and invest in a healthy working environment, opportunities for advancement and education, offering health care and good working hours for people associated with them.
The second concept is a planet. According to the framework, companies which follow the framework do their best to re3duce impacts on the environment. They realize the importance of a healthy environment to the present and future generations and try to conserve it. Before they engage in any activity, they gauge the impact of those activities on the environment.
The third concept is profit. According to the framework, businesses should view profits from the standpoint of how the profits will help empower and sustain the community.
The ISO: 14000 Standards
The ISO: 14000 is a family of standards that provides practical tools for companies and organizations that are seeking to be responsible for their environment. The set of standards was developed by the ISO Technical Committee. Just like other companies that are keen to enhance environmental health, Nissan Company has not been left behind. The company has adopted the ISO: 14000 standards and has even come up with an environmental philosophy, which is “A symbiosis of people, vehicle, and Nature. “The global giant has enacted a series of midterm environmental action plans under the name “Nissan Green Program. “In 2016, under the NGP, the company continued taking steps to its ultimate goal of reducing environmental dependence (“Environmental Initiative and Framework”, n.d). The target set forth four initiatives which are zero-emission vehicle penetration, fuel-efficient vehicles, corporate carbon footprint and natural resource use minimization.
The company’s efforts are not only present but it has also set future plans for its environmental strategy (“Environmental Initiative and Framework”, n.d). Under NGP 2022, the company aims at accelerating efforts to address environmental issues while strengthening the business foundation. The company aspires to pioneer the development of electric vehicles by 20022 under the “Nissan Intelligent Mobility” program.
Corporate Responsibility
Corporate responsibility refers to the responsibility which companies have to the people that they affect. This range from customers to those neighboring the companies. Besides, they can also include the community. Businesses have realized the power of corporate responsibility and have invested in it. The Nissan Company can be able to integrate corporate social responsibility into its activities through various ways. They include playing a more active role in the community, being transparent. Determining skills related to social responsibility, learning from other companies that are already implementing CSR and identifying ways through which the company can be environmentally sound.
Out of these strategies, the ones that I feel will have the best results for the company are being transparent and playing a more active role in the community. Considering that Nissan deals with automotive, it is imperative that the company is transparent to customers about various features of vehicles. This guarantees safety for the customers. Am sure this is one of the best ways of enhancing corporate responsibility. Playing a more active role in the society is the second strategy. I believe that the Nissan Company should adopt a more robust approach in the society and consider investing more in the community.
Conclusion
From the above, it is evident that sustainability is key for any business in the current highly competitive and changing business environment. Sustainability lays down the social, economic and environmental goals for any business thus guaranteeing long-term profitability and survival. Companies that ignore sustainability are bound to fade away after a few years. The case of Nissan, one of the leading Japanese automobile companies is a good example of sustainability. Nissan suffered heavy losses following the tsunami that devastated Japan in 2011. The company saw the destruction of several of its manufacturing plants and many could not see the company recovering. However, their doubts were soon put to rest. The management of the Nissan Company had embraced sustainability and they already anticipated the occurrence of such a disaster. Immediately after the devastation, they put teams on the ground that were busy looking into the best ways for the company to recover. This case should be a learning example for companies out there that have not yet invested in sustainability.
References
Environmental Initiative and Framework (n.d).Retrieved from https://www.nissan-global.com/en/environment/greenprogram/framework/
Schmidt, W., & Levi, S.D. (2013, August 27).Nissan Motor Company Ltd: Building Operational Resilency.Retrieved fromhttps://mitsloan.mit.edu/LearningEdge/CaseDocs/13-149%20Nissan.Simchi-Levi.pdf
Slaper, T., & Hall, T. (n.d).The Triple Bottom Line: What is it and how does it Work. Retrieved fromhttp://www.ibrc.indiana.edu/ibr/2011/spring/article2.html
Wandiga, C. (2013, December 11).Rethinking the Obvious: Lean and Sustainability. Retrieved fromhttp://www.sustainablebrands.com
