adminhas said.
Nagoya University of Commerce and Business Professor Takehiko Ito told delegates at the Zimbabwe Institute of Management annual International Management Conference in Victoria Falls that sustainability is a critical element in any business strategy.
The conference is running under the theme “Creating a sustainable and ethical future”.
“Of course, there is need to plan for today, but if companies fail to plan for the future they will die.
“Sustainable or ‘socially-admitted’ companies typically attract employee and customer loyalty, which results in the effective implementation of their broad and long-term objectives,” he said.
Japan has the world’s highest number of companies that are 200 years and older.
This, he said, is attributable to the implementation of sustainable management practices.
The country has 3 113 firms that are 200 years and older, followed by Germany with 1 563, France (331) and the United Kingdom (315).
He gave a case study of Kongo-gumi, the oldest company in the world – established in 578 – which is involved in the construction and maintenance of historical buildings.
The company faced bankruptcy in 2006, however, to the extent of its “social admittance” there was extensive silent social pressure for its survival.
According to Prof Ito, five common key factors that have been observed among long-life Japanese companies include an appreciation for stakeholders (as opposed to mere stockholders), diligence, continuous improvement, frugality and contribution to society.
“To create trust and social recognition companies should do two things: Firstly, provide socially admitted products/services and secondly share its prosperity (profit) not only within the firm (employees/shareholders), but also kick back to society by contributing to create a better future,” said Prof Ito.
Zimbabwean companies are currently constrained in implementing corporate social responsibility due to the prevailing liquidity crunch, despite its significance in the establishment of sustainable businesses.
“To create sustainable a company there is need for the firm to share its profits and utilising them for social objectives, especially for cultural/spiritual development. A culturally matured society has respect for its culture and such individuals tend to be loyal whether inside or outside the company,” he said
In respect of the macro-societal level, Zimbabwe Open University Pro-Vice Chancellor Professor Gabriel Kabanda told participants at the conference that the solution to Zimbabwe’s socio-economic challenges in knowledge.
“Zimbabwe has one of the highest literacy levels on the continent, which is largely under-utilised, but at the same time there is need to unpack other forms of literacy that are not as common but very important. For instance, there is digital literacy and financial literacy, whose levels are not as high as the basic literacy levels in the country.
“There is need for improved utilisation of new knowledge on information and communication technologies, as well as our indigenous knowledge systems,” he said.
According to a research done by Prof Ito on Gross Domestic Product and info-density covering 18 countries in East and Southern Africa, Zimbabwe had a GDP per person of US$300, while Botswana had a GDP per person of US$6 000. He attributed this to limited usage of critical knowledge systems.
“Human capital development is central to capacity development. Notable are human capital development initiatives in Asian markets, which at present lead the decline in global poverty.
“The solution to the human capital development challenges in Zimbabwe is a long-term sustainable strategy.
“Most managers that are being trained at the moment are transactional, but what we need at the moment are transformational leaders,” added Professor Kabanda.
Similarly to Prof Ito, the ZOU pro-vice chancellor also urged companies to increase CSR investment into their communities in order to enhance critical infrastructure and generally improving the quality of life.
Speaking at the same event, Marketers Association of Zimbabwe president Mr Godfrey Dube called for managers to be innovative.
“The only way business can stay ahead of competition both locally and in the region is innovation, which in itself is an important aspect of the marketing orientation.
“Without innovative ideas, a company stagnates and may even cease as an on going concern, innovation is thus a necessity,” he said.
The MAZ president added that if a firm’s management intends to foster innovation they should try to provide an organisation structure in which innovative ideas are encouraged to emerge, which may have repercussions on the organisation’s short-term objectives.
Online Reporter