I’m currently participating in a research project in conjunction with MGSM’s fledgling Institute for Sustainable Leadership and grappling with the multiple meanings of the word “sustainable” in the organisational context.
Tonight, as I read an article by consultant Dan Holden, I am struck by his use of the phrase “elegant means” – “It holds a promise for leaders that there are ways of working and being in relationship that yield greater results created with significantly less effort.”
Even though Holden uses the phrase in a team development context, it resonates as a concept that is broad enough to cover all aspects of the corporate sustainability / responsibility debate. So “elegant means” can be those ways of working and being in relationship that yield greater economic (profit) results. It can also be those means that have minimal environmental impact and those means that yield positive social results for employees and all stakeholders.
Very elegant.