50/50
Balance
Balance financial + impact goals.
What is a sustainablecompany?
Define the traits of credible sustainable businesses.
A sustainable company balances financial performance with environmental and social responsibility. This page explains the traits of sustainable companies and how to communicate them internally and externally.
Sustainable company guide:
What is a sustainable company?
A sustainable company embeds environmental stewardship, social responsibility, and ethical governance into strategy, operations, and reporting.
4 traits
Traits
Governance, operations, culture, and reporting.
365
Cadence
Sustainability is a daily practice, not annual.
Key focus areas
Purpose-led governance. Board and leadership set clear sustainability direction.
Responsible operations. Measure and reduce environmental and social impacts.
Inclusive culture. Empower people to contribute to sustainability goals.
Transparent reporting. Share progress honestly with stakeholders.
WHY IT MATTERS
Why it matters
Investor appeal. Sustainable companies access more capital options.
Customer loyalty. Buyers prefer brands with credible commitments.
Operational resilience. Lower risk from regulatory and climate shocks.
Talent retention. Employees stay when purpose is visible.
HOW TO ACT
How to become sustainable
- Define sustainability goals. Set measurable targets tied to enterprise value.
- Embed in governance. Integrate sustainability into board agendas and incentives.
- Align operations. Map actions across supply chain, facilities, products, and culture.
- Report with integrity. Use RunSustainably to record evidence and share progress.
MEASUREMENT
Measurement + reporting
- KPIs + targets. Set quantitative goals for emissions, diversity, safety, etc.
- Double materiality lens. Explain both financial and impact materiality.
- Stakeholder feedback. Survey customers, employees, investors.
- Assurance-ready records. Store supporting data for audits.
Action ideas
Run a sustainability maturity assessment. Identify gaps across governance, operations, and reporting.
Create a sustainability narrative. Document purpose, actions, and proof in one deck.
Align incentives. Tie leadership and team goals to sustainability KPIs.
GLOSSARY SNAPSHOT
Terms to know
Sustainable company. An organisation balancing profit with environmental and social stewardship.
Double materiality. Looking at impact on society + impacts on enterprise value.
Integrated reporting. Combining financial and sustainability information.
FAQS
What is a sustainable company? FAQs
What makes a company sustainable?
Clear goals, embedded governance, responsible operations, and transparent reporting.
How do we prove we are sustainable?
Share data, stories, and third-party validations; log everything in RunSustainably.
Does size matter?
No—both large and small organisations can adopt sustainable practices.
Where do we start?
Run a materiality assessment and set measurable goals.
Drova RunSustainably unites objectives, approvals, and reporting so ESG stories stay credible.
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