Sustainable organizations are very much about working together. Creating an open and warm culture. At Based On People we call it "The Together". Research calls it "Collective Intelligence". Read the article and get inspired by Emilia Liljefrost, Program Manager Sustainable Working Life at the Swedish Labour Council.
We at Based On People believe in teamwork and a corporate culture that creates a healthy and long-term development. This week we have the privilege to talk about this topical area with Emilia Liljefrost.

There is a lot of talk about sustainability in business. Most of us realize that social sustainability is important. We need each other in the organization. "Alone is NOT strong". What does the research say?
This is an interesting question that can be approached from several perspectives. Since the 1990s, our ways of streamlining operations have led to an increasing degree of specialization. In several areas, there is also a perception that activities have become more complex. This contributes to an increased need for cooperation within organizations. We need each other's skills to deliver. At the same time, research shows that we are only marginally better as a group than we are as individual employees - unless we actively work on our collaboration skills, that is. So no, alone is neither strong nor necessarily productive.
Tips:
Collective intelligence and warm groups: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E4cYjrAaxbw
Or read: Knowledge integration. On collective intelligence in organizations (Philip Runsten and Andreas Werr)


What is the impact of digitalization and technology development on 'social' sustainability? How can it help?
The technological development we are experiencing is sometimes labeled as the fourth industrial revolution. It is said to be exponential and will affect us in ways that we cannot even foresee today. At the same time, it is good to remember that digitalization is a development that has been going on for a long time through computerization, automation and robotization, it is not really new in itself. One risk of the technological developments we are facing is if we just let it happen without deciding how we want it to serve humanity. At the same time, there is interesting potential in that technology can equalize differences, becoming tools that create better conditions for inclusion. Technology is not necessarily neutral, but properly created, it can help us make skills visible without the normative bias that we humans find difficult to escape.
Tips:
Max Tegmark: Life 3.0 | MIT Artificial Intelligence (AI) Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gi8LUnhP5yU


How is social sustainability created in an organization? How important is it to create diversity?
An important factor is that we see the benefits and potential gains of diversity. Research shows that diversity in organizations contributes to resilience and the ability to manage change. This in itself becomes hard currency when life is characterized by volatility and short development cycles. Something that I have noticed as an up-coming trend is universal workplace design. This means that we need to change our mindset and stop creating special solutions for groups we identify as deviating from the norm and instead start designing activities both physically and organizationally so that the norm corridors are widened. We are all different and our capacity to deliver varies over time. Employers who become good at harnessing differences among employees will have advantages and be better equipped to face the future compared to those who build their business based on narrow conditions and ideas about who and who can work in the organization.
Tips:
Want to know more? Get in touch: https://akademssr.se/UUA