DEVELOPMENT OF SUSTAINABILITY INDICATORS: APPROACHES, CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES

Rapidly changing and complex business environment requires from enterprises to cautiously develop their business strategies in order to achieve and maintain competitive advantage over the long term. With the awareness of importance of environmental consequences and sustainability, market value is no longer determined by single financial performance indicators. The sustainability framework which encompasses economic, environmental and social performances has rather received an international attention of both corporate and financial sector. Even though it is generally accepted that the adoption of sustainability ratios is a most adequate and effective way for sustainability performances’ assessment, both the creation/selection of sustainability ratios and their implementation and analysis have been still examined at national and corporate levels. Most companies have adopted the internationally recognized performance evaluation systems (such as Global Reporting Initiative or United Nations Global Compact). Still, there is increasing number of companies that apply self-developed sustainable performance evaluation methodologies. The main purpose of this paper is to investigate the development and application of the performance indicators of sustainable management with the aim to offer suggestions for selection of sustainability ratios which application should increase the effectiveness of controlling and decision-making process and would lead to long term competitive advantage