Applying the Three C's of Sustainable Development to Defense Department Planning

Abstract

This exposition reviews the extant literature on sustainable development and interviews from senior executives from multinational enterprises to develop a framework for understanding the conditions which generate high shared value initiatives for global enterprises and for the broader system. We consider how the lessons from private industry may be applied in the defense department acquisition process. In general, our analysis indicates that both types of enterprises (private and military) are most likely to generate high shared value when they have the capability to do so, there is consistency between the creation of primary stakeholder value and system value, and that the system value can be cultivated beyond the enterprise that created the original initiative. From a military acquisition perspective, our analysis suggests that additional factors may need to be considered in the evaluation of partners in light of the revised energy policy currently being implemented.