BTL 740 - Double Bottom Line or Two Bottom Lines

 

The Banking Tutor’s Lessons

BTL 740                                                                          03-01-2025

Double Bottom Line (aka Two Bottom Lines)

Double bottom line (DBL) is a business strategy that marries financial profit to social responsibility.

Ordinarily, the bottom-line tracks fiscal performance and financial profit and loss. DBL measures the benefit of positive impact—it focuses on more than just the return on investment. Rather, it considers both the financial and social aspects of your business.

The idea that for-profit corporations have an obligation to support social causes beyond their interest in short-term profits dates back to the corporate social responsibility movement in the 1960s.

Values have a strong influence on consumer behaviour. Today’s consumers don’t just want high-quality products and services. They want to use their purchasing power to support businesses that support bigger causes, so that they too can have a positive impact.

Corporate values not only impact consumer behaviour but also the decisions of top talent within the workforce. When you commit your business to a DBL, your employees experience a greater sense of self-fulfilment at their jobs because they are making a difference in the world just by showing up for work each day.

Advantages of having Two Bottom Lines

Placing equal value on profit and the planet is a step in the right direction for the business world.

As long as businesses have existed, a majority have drained environmental resources, polluted the earth, and created a host of environmental problems.

DBL recognizes that without consideration for the planet, businesses will drain or pollute their resources faster than those resources can be replenished. That means businesses will not survive—and even more, humans will not survive the severe consequences of the climate crises. This recognition is the beginning of a less polluted, more diverse, and more productive world.

Surviving the climate crisis is not enough. It also requires a foundation of race and gender equality, greater economic equality, and more resilient communities. For this reason, social issues matter as much as sustainable solutions for climate change.

DBL acknowledges that without high standards for human rights, equality, and healthy communities, companies won’t gain consumer support and will be forced to either reevaluate their standards, or close their doors for good.

In many situations, it’s possible to do the right thing and make money at the same time. But that’s not all—here are seven more advantages:

Enhance brand image

Increase employee retention rate

Improve employee satisfaction

Attract top talent

Reduce carbon footprint

Expand business opportunities with ecofriendly partners

Grow your business and improve your financial future

 

Sekhar Pariti

+91 9440641014