When people hear the word sustainability, the first thought that springs to mind is about the environment – doing something in a way that is environmentally friendly, something that allows the environment to stay healthy and thriving, or sustainable.

The most widely used definition of sustainability is one developed at a United Nations conference on the subject. It defined sustainability as being able to “meet present needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs.”

And for businesses that are thinking green, that idea of sustainability has come to mean more than just a concern about the environment, but a concern about people as well, according to business analyst Susan Hauser. And because of this, it’s an area where human resources is heavily involved. Sustainability has taken on a broader, more inclusive meaning – not only how a company treats the earth, but how it treats the earth’s inhabitants as well, including its employees and other stakeholders.

Human resource departments have come to play an active role in bringing a culture of sustainability to businesses.

In dealing with sustainability issues, businesses also are looking at how they interact with the community and how they foster diversity, Hauser says. Is the company being sustainable in the way it hires through diversity and fairness?

Sustainability involves the way businesses support their communities through volunteerism and charity.

In a recent survey conducted by the Society for Human Resource Management, which involved more than 700 HR professionals, almost half said they have seen healthy returns on their sustainability investment. The survey showed that sustainability programs helped to improve employee morale, increase business productivity, enhance the image of the company, strengthen worker loyalty and enlarge the brand recognition.

In another survey done in 2011, polling almost 400 executives, almost half reported that establishing sustainability programs helped to cut costs and increase profit. Moreover, the survey showed that sustainability programs were also generating more innovation at the companies and leading to growth.

The report went on to state that sustainability was a source of innovation and new growth for many companies and that engaging the entire workforce in such initiatives, while raising morale, was a source of new ideas and approaches.

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