This question has two parts; be sure to answer both. First, explain each element of the triple bottom line. Next, imagine that you are managing White Teeth Inc., a company that produces chemical treatments that dentists use to whiten their patients' teeth. Explain how you might take each element of the triple bottom line into account in your day-to-day management of the company.

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

The triple bottom line—representing people, planet, and profit (the 3 Ps)—measures an organization's social, environmental, and financial performance. In this view of corporate performance, an organization has a responsibility to its employees and to the wider community (people), is committed to sustainable (green) environmental practices (planet), and includes the costs of pollution, worker displacement, and other factors in its financial calculations (profit). Success in these areas can be measured through a social audit, a systematic assessment of the company's performance in implementing socially responsible programs, often based on predefined goals.

Here are some examples of how you might manage the 3 P's at White Teeth, Inc.:

People: In general, you will treat your employees with respect, paying them properly and offering them the best benefits package that your company can afford. You can take your people responsibilities several steps further, too. For example, you might institute a program that offers a lower price to people with lower income. (Many pharmaceutical companies have begun selling extremely expensive drugs at discounted prices to lower-income people.)

Planet: Tooth whitening agents are made from chemicals. You want to make sure you are not dumping chemical waste into any public water supplies and that you are disposing of waste products responsibly and legally.

Profit: Of course, White Teeth, Inc. is in business to make a profit. While doing the best for your people and the planet, you want to keep an eye on the bottom line, making sure that you are minimizing your costs (while still creating a safe, effective product), marketing your product widely and maximizing your customer base, and maximizing your profits.