Social sustainability remains one of the most important notions related to the concept of a healthy society that is discussed by many researchers. In their article, McElroy, Jorna, and van Engelen tell the readers about their findings related to the “sustainability context” that is closely interconnected with the most urgent problems in the field of management and administration (223). According to the authors, sustainability as an essential factor related to the proper development of a company seems to be underestimated, and there is a lot of additional problems that occur due to this fact. In general, it is possible to state that the attention of the researchers was focused on the ways to make sustainability reports more specific and effective. During the research, the authors were using a variety of measurement models helping to define whether certain groups of people or companies possess sustainability.
The article seems to be extremely helpful for other researchers because the authors manage to identify, analyze, and evaluate the most important sustainability theories used by modern specialists. What is more, the researchers touch upon a variety of theoretical concepts relevant to the discussed field. For instance, they establish links between sustainability and different types of personnel resources. Among other aspects of the discussed problem, the authors introduce and explain the notion of sustainability quotient that is used in order to understand the relationship between the resources used by the company and the results of its work. Having conducted their research, the authors concluded that it was necessary to pay increased attention to sustainability quotients because it could help to address certain challenges related to the reports and their interpretation. In the end, the given article presents a lot of ideas that have not been discussed by previous researchers in the field, and this fact makes it even more valuable.
Although social sustainability may sometimes be regarded as an abstract notion, there are certain ways to calculate it quantitatively and it really helps the researchers working in the discussed field to increase the practical significance of their projects. In order to extend the knowledge on the social sustainability of a particular group, it may be necessary to use a range of approaches. To begin with, it is possible to evaluate the personnel lapse factor. In order to do that, it is necessary to take into consideration the number of employees who were dismissed during the necessary period of time. Besides, it is important to know the average number of staff members.
Then, it is necessary to divide the first number by the second and multiply the quotient by one hundred. The final result may be used when there is a need to evaluate the social sustainability of a certain company. Apart from that, it can be necessary to use sustainability quotients mentioned by the authors of the discussed article. According to them, in order to evaluate social sustainability, it is important to know the actual amount of human capital produced with the help of organizational operations during the necessary period of time (230). What is more, one has to know the required amount of this capital essential for the proper functioning of society. Then, the first number should be divided by the second; the formula helps to assess the present condition of the society or a company. To continue, there are other factors related to social sustainability that can be calculated quantitatively. They include the average quality of life in the society and equity of the company.
Work Cited
McElroy, Mark W., Rene J. Jorna, and Jo van Engelen. “Sustainability Quotients and the Social Footprint.” Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, vol.15, no.4, 2008, pp. 223-234.