Sustainability is More than Inspiration & Aspiration

Defining Sustainability

The following article is a reprint from the July 2022 issue of ISSA Today magazine

Sustainability definitions are typically equal parts inspiration and aspiration. Examples include the Great Law of the Iroquois Confederacy, which stated:

In our every deliberation, we must consider the impact of our decisions on the next seven generations.

Or, there is the United Nations’ Brundtland Commission, which defined sustainability in its report Our Common Future as:

Meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

But for the cleaning industry and other companies in the service sector, it may be essential to define sustainability using more business-oriented terms—terms that connect the operational strategy and tactics directly to the long-term guiding framework of a business.

Identifying the Business Framework

Organizations have a choice of business frameworks they can adopt to help them compete and succeed. At one end of the spectrum, opportunists may utilize a framework focused on short-term transactional strategies.

These companies focus solely on turning a quick profit as they do not attempt to build relationships with their customers, employees, or communities in which they operate. Once the transaction is completed, these companies move on to the next opportunity to make a dollar.

At the other end of the spectrum are “generational companies” that use sustainability as their business strategy. These companies care about their long-term customers. They aim to create workplaces that inspire professional growth and retention among their employees and the desire to improve the communities in which they operate.

Defining Generational Companies

The concept of a generational company evokes a family that creates a business with the specific intent of passing it on to their children. Generational can also apply to companies with established brands that span generations (think Procter & Gamble’s Tide laundry detergent or Kimberly-Clark’s Kleenex facial tissue).

Adopting a Sustainability Framework

Whether a manufacturer, distributor, or service provider, every company in the cleaning industry should clearly define its guiding framework. Although there is no right or wrong answer, it’s essential to realize that your business framework will have long-term effects on your company, employees, customers, and community.

Companies that want to remain in business for a long time must consider their impacts on future generations and include these concerns in their decision-making process. For them, sustainability is the proper business framework now and in the future.

Furthermore, the concept of a generational business framework applies to companies that are “mission-driven” with a specific intent to improve the lives of their employees, communities, and even the world—as well as make a profit. And beyond the corporate world, a generational business framework can apply to public institutions such as governments, schools, universities, and health care providers.

Stephen P. Ashkin is known as “the father of Green Cleaning” and the professional cleaning industry’s leading advocate for sustainability. He is president of The Ashkin Group, and can be reached at steve@ashkingroup.com