The following bocks are recommended by CSR-Tempo Partners:
John Elkington (1997). Cannibals with Forks: Triple Bottom Line of 21st Century Business. Oxford: Capstone Publishing
Cannibals with Forks introduced the concept of the triple bottom line (TBL). The book asked whether capitalism itself was sustainable? It projected the third pressure wave. And it looked at the ways in which TBL thinking would transform accounting. The second major section identified and explored seven drivers of the transformation: Markets, Values, Transparency, Life-Cycle Technology, Partnerships, Time, and Corporate Governance.
[more]
Wayne Visser (2011). The Age of Responsibility: CSR 2.0 and the New DNA of Business. Chichester, UK: Wiley
This paper argues that CSR, as a business, governance and ethics system, has failed. This assumes that success or failure is measured in terms of the net impact (positive or negative) of business on society and the environment.
[more]
Peter Miller (2010). The Smart Swarm: How Understanding Flocks, Schools, and Colonies Can Make UsBetter at Communicating, Decision Making, and Getting Things Done. New York: Avery
The modern world may be obsessed with speed and productivity, but twenty-first-century humans actually have much to learn from the ancient instincts of swarms. A fascinating new take on the concept of collective intelligence and its colorful manifestations in some of our most complex problems, The Smart Swarm introduces a compelling new understanding of the real experts on solving our own complex problems relating to such topics as business, politics, and technology.
[more]
Ori Brafman & Rod Beckstrom (2006). The Starfish and the Spider: The Unstoppable Power of Leaderless Organizations. New York: Penguin Group
Cut off a spider’s head, and it dies; cut off a starfish’s leg and it grows a new one, and that leg can grow into an entirely new starfish. Traditional top-down organisations are like spiders, but now starfish organisations are changing the face of business and the world. What’s the hidden power behind the success of Wikipedia and Skype? What does Ebay have in common with the women’s rights movement? The authors have discovered some unexpected answers, gripping stories and a tapestry of unlikely connections.
[more]
Janine M. Benyus (1998). Biomimicry: Innovation Inspired by Nature. New York: Harper Publishers
Forget the notion that technology improves upon nature. Benyus introduces us to pioneering engineers making technological breakthroughs by uncovering and copying nature’s hidden marvels. These engineers are devising solar fuel cells as efficient as plants, fibers as tough as abalone shell, and computers as sophisticated as the brain. For Benyus, though, a technology that mirrors nature does more than enlarge human powers and gratify human ambitions. Such a technology teaches us how to live in harmony with nature, rather than how to dominate it. Unless we learn this urgent lesson, Benyus warns, our highly unnatural and exploitative technologies will soon render the earth unfit for life. Sobering yet hopeful, this book will bring help bridge the dangerous chasm between technophiles and environmentalists.
[more]
Jan Jonker & Jakob Eskildsen (2008). Management Models for the Future. Berlin et al. Springer
It is evident that many organisations are in need of renovation, innovation and reinvigoration. Longstanding business paradigms and underpinning practices require critical reflection in the light of fundamental societal and business developments. Some companies are addressing these challenges, many companies are not. New functional requirements often seem to be in conflict, such as transparency, stock market performance, sustainability, innovation, responsibility, time to market, stakeholders, business rationalisation and many others. These requirements force business to revise its management model. The time is right to demonstrate how the business enterprise can be re-conceptualised, and what the challenges are of fundamental strategic choices in organising a sustainable business proposition. This book presents ten cases of organisations which have developed a management model that leads the organisation into the future.
[more]
Jan Jonker & Marco de Witte (2006). Management Models for Corporate Social Responsibility. Berlin et al.: Springer
This book harvests tried and tested management models – models that have demonstrated added value in everyday organisational practice – in an accessible and readable volume. Each contribution is structured around one central figure while describing concisely the nature, the use, actual experiences and some do’s and don’ts of CSR. The book is written for a managerial and consultants audience, people that have to deal with CSR in everyday practice.
[more]
Adam Werbach (2009). Strategy for Sustainability. Boston: Harvard Business School Publishing
More than ever before, consumers, employees, and investors share a common purpose and a passion for companies that do well by doing good. So any strategy without sustainability at its core is just plain irresponsible – bad for business, bad for shareholders, bad for the environment. These challenges represent unprecedented opportunities for big brands – such as Clorox, Dell, Toyota, Procter & Gamble, Nike, and Wal-Mart – that are implementing integral, rather than tangential, strategies for sustainability. What these companies are doing illuminates the book’s practical framework for change, which involves engaging employees, using transparency as a business tool, and reaping the rewards of a networked organizational structure.
[more]
J.R. McNeill & Paul M. Kennedy (2001). Something New Under the Sun: An Environmental History of the Twentieth-Century World. New York, London: W.W. Norton
The history of the twentieth century is most often told through its world wars, the rise and fall of communism, or its economic upheavals. In his startling new book, J. R. McNeill gives us our first general account of what may prove to be the most significant dimension of the twentieth century: its environmental history. To a degree unprecedented in human history, we have refashioned the earth’s air, water, and soil, and the biosphere of which we are a part. Based on exhaustive research, McNeill’s story—a compelling blend of anecdotes, data, and shrewd analysis—never preaches: it is our definitive account.
[more]
Andrew Crane; Abagail McWilliams; Dirk Matten; Jeremy Moon & Donald S. Siegel (2008). The Oxford Handbook of Corporate Social Responsibility. Oxford: Oxford University Press
CSR encompasses broad questions about the changing relationship between business, society, and government. This Handbook is an authoritative review of the academic research that has both prompted, and responded to, these issues. Bringing together leading experts, it provides clear thinking and new perspectives on CSR and the debates around it.
[more]
Peter M. Senge; Bryan Smith; Sara Schley; Joe Laur & Nina Kruschwitz (2008). The Necessary Revolution: How Individuals And Organizations Are Working Together to Create a Sustainable World. New York: The Doubleday
Imagine a world in which the excess energy from one business would be used to heat another. Where buildings need less and less energy around the world, and where “regenerative” commercial buildings – ones that create more energy than they use – are being designed. A world in which environmentally sound products and processes would be more cost-effective than wasteful ones. A world in which corporations such as Costco, Nike, BP, and countless others are forming partnerships with environmental and social justice organizations to ensure better stewardship of the earth and better livelihoods in the developing world. Now, stop imagining – that world is already emerging.
[more]
Alan AtKisson (2010). The Sustainability Transformation: How to Accelerate Positive Change in Challenging Times. Routledge
THE SUSTAINABILITY TRANSFORMATION is “essential, transformative reading” for professionals in all sectors: business executives, government officials, leaders, teachers and students — as well as ”sustainability amateurs,” or anyone who is trying to make positive change in their corner of the world.
[more]