The Doing Good Business Diamond: Going Beyond the Triple Bottom Line for Sustainable Business Modeling

Abstract

Economies are always in transition, yet for some historical periods, transformations have been more revolting than for others. There are periods where changes in how we create value have caused changes in how we perceive ourselves as human beings, our behavior, and, how we organize our societies. This was the case when we went from being hunter-gatherers to becoming farmers, and when our economies were industrialized. Each historical period found ways of dealing with the issue of sustainability – ways of preventing those in power from exploiting Planet and People such as the sharing rules of hunter-gatherers, the religious demands of feudalism, and the competitive markets of capitalism. When sustainability of our societies is threatened, it may be a sign that we are living in a time of revolting transition – that we are entering a post-industrial era and need to adjust our behavior and governance systems. Businesses are driving the transition and should also take responsibility for People and Planet. Sustainable business models, like the Triple Layered Business Model Canvas (TLBMC), are one method for systematically evaluating the impact of businesses on People and Planet – but using such tools is like treating symptoms without knowing what is wrong with the patient. We suggest a framework, Doing Good Business (DGB), for addressing underlying problems in how Value Creation, Governance, and Behavior interconnect. In the Doing Good Business Diamond (DGBD) this framework is integrated with the TLBMC to get a full patient checkup.