Sustainability Lists

Peter T Knight recently published an article on America's love of lists. His focus was on the "Sustainability Lists" that seem to be proliferating. The article is very tongue in cheek and a pretty good read (The article is from Ethical Corporation and requires a subscription). I posted his conclusions below.

"There is something essentially dishonest about methodologies that attempt to be objective about measuring the subjective. Sustainability lists are lists of opinion, heavily skewed by biases that range from ideology to the need to make a buck. That many of the emerging sustainability lists are pupating from those who purport to be gatekeepers of business ethics is just one of those wonderful ironies of business life.

Let us keep things in perspective. Here is a short list of List Truisms:

· Lists are great fun.
· It’s always good to be included in a list of the best.
· It rarely means very much.
· But the chief executive will always hold you responsible if you’re excluded.
· Unless it’s a list of the worst.
· Then you will get a bonus for keeping your boss out of the limelight.
· Especially if you’re stressed about your chief executive’s expected chastising email because you failed to make the latest sustainability list."

Now many of you are probably asking your self how this relates to Indian Development, and there is probably nothing relevant without making a huge stretch of logic, so I won't attempt to do it. If anyone wants a full copy of the article let me know and I'll send you a pdf version.