Practicing Stakeholder Management

In this competitive global market, corporations are finding ways to be more sustainable. Sustainability has become a critical issue for organisations and it is now widely used as the desirable path for organisations to accelerate. An organisation is made up of different interrelated individuals and constituencies which are also known as the stakeholders. A network of relationships connects the organisation with the stakeholders which influence how the company works (Worley 2011). The ability of a company to continue its operation over a long period of time revolves around the sustainable relationships between the stakeholders and the company itself and therefore, measurement of corporate performance should always take account of stakeholders’ needs and requirements. A sustainability-oriented corporation fully understood its responsibilities towards the different stakeholders and has suitable implementations to boost its social, economic and ecological performance. Hence, companies need to manage properly and ensure that they are on track and are effectively responding to the stakeholders’ concerns (Perrini & Tencati 2006).

Nowadays, corporations are encouraged to be more responsible environmental and social friendly to achieve a sustainable economic order. Sustainable development problems and climate changes are not able to solve by themselves, hence management should involve heterogeneous group of stakeholders and together achieve a common objective/ multi-stakeholder objectives. Essentially, the end decisions should not only be beneficial to stakeholders, but made in consideration of the impacts it might have on the environment and socially (Murray, Haynes & Hudson 2010).

Sustainability

Sustainability is connected with the corporation’s long-term success and survival. It is commonly applied to the concept of the triple bottom line which consist the dimensions of social, environmental and economic (Elkington, citied in Wu 2011). It is associated with a better management of corporate social and environmental impacts and improved stakeholder integration with regards to corporate social responsibility (CSR). Sustainability incorporates to a corporation’s activities, most of the times voluntary, displaying the inclusion of concerns towards the society and environment in operation of business and during interactions with its stakeholders (van Marrewijk and Were, citied in Quinn & Dalton 2009). An essential requirement for sustainability is that corporations should balance and scrutinize to prevent conflicting goals between individual groups of stakeholders (Alkhafaji, citied in Akisik & Gal 2011).

Stakeholder theory

In this amalgamated world society, corporations are facing pressure from enhancing their profitability while reducing costs and also, the tension from powerful stakeholders to present social and environmental