Composite indicator for measuring corporate sustainability

Corporate sustainability performance is a multidimensional concept based on the original idea of sustainable development, replacing the traditional understanding of corporate performance only as capital appreciation for owners. The objective of this paper is to present a model for the measurement of corporate sustainability - Complex Performance Indicator (CPI). CPI integrates the environmental, social, economic and corporate governance performance of the company. CPI contains seventeen key performance indicators which were gradually determined from the basic set of performance indicators using statistical methods. CPI sums up the complex corporate performance into a single value but, at the same time, the set of aggregated sub-indicators of individual performance areas enables a detailed analysis and determination of the impact of various performance areas and factors on the complex corporate performance. The introduction of benchmarking is a crucial element in the entire model, as it enables to interpret the aggregated information and to quantify the performance gap. The results including their visualisation are presented in the case study. The complex assessment of corporate performance helps to uncover the weaknesses of the company that could become a threat and to identify strengths which the company might pursue as an opportunity. The results of such an analysis serve as the point of reference for deciding about the future. (c) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.