Business View Magazine | Volume 8, Issue 9

94 BUSINESS VIEW MAGAZINE VOLUME 8, ISSUE 9 After a company determines what it wants to act on, it must create improvement options – typically in the form of projects – and then perform cost-benefit analyses to determine which option, if any, is most viable. As discussed above, sometimes costs avoided or revenue opportunities can be quantified. In other cases where an action leads to a risk reduction, cost- benefit analyses may also have a qualitative component. Summary Most businesses face risks in their own operations or in their supply chain in one or more of these areas: resource depletion, pollution, climate change, worker health and safety, labor rights, or diversity and equality. Sustainability projects are selected based on their ability to address these issues while reducing costs, reducing risks, increasing revenue, or increasing external investment. A company should perform materiality assessment to determine which of these risks or opportunities are most relevant to its business success and to its key stakeholders. Companies face additional challenges when addressing these issues within their supply chain. Buying organizations must help create both the incentive and capability for suppliers to change their current practices to more sustainable ones. https://sustainabilityconsortium.org/ perform an assessment to determine which issues are most relevant to act on. This materiality assessment involves these steps: 1. Identify the environmental and social responsibility issues to consider. 2. Assess the importance of these issues to business success. 3. Assess the importance of these issues to relevant stakeholders. 4. Choose to focus on issues that are both important to business success and to stakeholders.