RSGB Bachelor Specialization (SBWL)

Welcome to the SBWL Responsibility and Sustainability in Global Business!

The RSGB specialization is located at the intersection of global business, sustainable management and corporate responsibility, focusing upon the role of business in tackling societal grand challenges and United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Central to this focus is understanding the complexity and interrelationships that emerge, both between systemic elements of sustainability (environment, social and economic) and between levels of analysis (global, regional, national, organizational and individual).

This complexity is further increased by the different disciplinary approaches used to understand business’ role in tackling societal grand challenges and the fact that the RSGB specialization will look at these complex relationships both from a comparative (e.g., differences across institutional contexts) and a cross-border perspective (e.g., the insight that effectively addressing societal grand challenges requires cross-national partnerships).

The focus is on international business strategies, behaviors and impact in response to global challenges. This includes:

• Assessing global-local tensions, to enable responsible and sustainable practices, which reflect local sustainability issues and stakeholder expectations.

• Understanding the implications of governance, stakeholder expectations and risk in decision-making processes but also the opportunities for transformation at both the organizational and societal levels.

• Recognizing the role of global business in societal transformation and the importance of “future proofing” organizations in respect to long term megatrends facing society, to enable business to evolve and meet the critical challenges to deliver true value across social, environmental, and economic dimensions.

• The role of purpose and value-driven leadership in sustainable and responsible business practice.

• How environmental, social, and governance factors (ESG) shape business agendas.

• The role of Equity, Inclusion & Diversity (EI&D) in helping global organizations to adapt to an ever faster changing socioeconomic and political context and in attracting talent from all walks of life.