Stability - Change balance in sustainable organizations

• Author: Viorel Cornescu; Vladimir-Codrin Ionescu
• Pages: 232-239

Viorel Cornescu. Professor, PhD, “Nicolae Titulescu” University and University of Bucharest, Faculty of Business and Administration, Romania; (e-mail: viorel.cornescu@drept.unibuc.ro)

Vladimir-Codrin Ionescu. Associate Professor, PhD, University of Bucharest, Faculty of Business and Administration, Romania; (e-mail: vladimir-codrin.ionescu@drept.unibuc.ro)

Page 232

1. Introduction

Sustainable development represents the fundamental goal of the contemporary society, which governs all strategies, policies as well as fundamental and adopted programs at a global, regional and national level. The support for sustainable development is achieving human progress while harmonizing the “economic – social – ecologic” trio.

Economically, sustainability implies creating and consolidating a stable and predictable business environment, favorable for the development of the organization sector, especially for small and midsized organizations. Our scientific approach starts with the premise that the existence of a strong sector of sustainable organizations represents a fundamental premise for building a new modern and competitive economy. In our opinion, the sustainable organization is the main micro economic pawn of the new economy, based on knowledge.

The sustainable organization was formed during the last decades in developed countries. This new type of organization in characterized by high functionality and creativity, sets the accent relatively equally on economic, social and ecologic aspects, it holds the capacity to permanently perfect itself, it constantly creates new products and services, it generates information and competitive knowledge, which ensures a sustainable development on a long term, from which both employees and entrepreneurs can benefit [1].

Promoting sustainable organizations represented one of the main concerns on the agenda at the International Labor’s Organization Conference in Geneva in 2007. The tripartite delegations, formed by governments, unions and employers representatives, came up with a series of conclusions, one of them being the one according to which the sustainable organization, who is mostly of small or medium in size, represents the „engine” of future development, of which the economic and social performance level of each country depends on [2].

Page 233

Also, the sustainable organization represented one of the major themes approached during the 8^th European Regional Reunion of the International Labor Organization, which took place in Lisbon from the 9^th to the 13^th of February 2009. The participant delegations to this reunion proposed a series of measures which target a stable and sustainable economic growth. From these, we remind [3]: using incentive packages, in order to reduce the consequences of the recession; making new strict international regulations regarding the financial market and also the commercial markets in order to prevent the apparition of systemic risks which have not been foreseen and removed by previous engagements; adopting some measures concerning access to financing, in view of stimulating entrepreneurship and the capacity of small and midsized firms to keep their employees and to create new jobs; promoting favorable environment for sustainable organizations, as a main support for economic recovery and growth; reestablishing a normal flow of human and investment capital in mid and long term, in order to avoid a serious deterioration of the production base from certain countries; ensuring a functional financial system to facilitate growth and to create a more dynamic private sector; the development by some organizations of the initiatives of corporate social responsibility, in order to complete the sustainable strategies and the results in cause.

Consequently, economic sustainable development is conditioned decisively by the existence of sustainable organizations, which need to benefit a favorable context to the foundation and functioning from the commercial, financial, management, technological, administrative, educational, legal, scientific, ecologic, cultural and political points of view. This favorable context is created by making some strategies and policies that promote entrepreneurship operational and by establishing sustainable organizations. In this sense, it is essential that social partners are aware of the role played by sustainable organizations in consolidating a dynamic and competitive microeconomic sector, which constitutes one of the main vectors of social and economic development based on knowledge.

Beyond contextual factors, we appreciate that it is important for managers and entrepreneurs to practice a modern, proactive management, to identify and value business opportunities, to manifest receptivity to what is new, creativity and flexibility and, thus to subscribe their organizations on the path of sustainability.

2. The sustainable organization

The sustainable organization is the organization which, based on an economic, ecologic and social balanced approach, values knowledge and the other resources it owns and attracts, at a higher level while generating efficiency and multi dimensional performances validated by the market and society, for long periods of time [4].

In our conception, the sustainable organization represents an added value generating entity in the economic, social and ecologic environments that, through a proactive, flexible and innovative management constantly creates competitive advantage compared to the competition.

In order to become sustainable, an organization must be run by managers and entrepreneurs who have a strategic vision and also it must own human resources with multiple competences, a flexible management system, material and financial resources, performance technologies, as well as an organization culture oriented towards change, creativity and innovation. Each of the components above has a well defined position in the organization’s internal environment configuration and a special part in its functioning mechanism.

Sustainable organizations must perform periodic evaluations of their competitive potential, backed up by thorough analysis of the business environment...