ICM614: Sustainability in the Business World

Module code: ICM614

Module provider: Finance and Accounting; Henley Business School

Credits: 20

ECTS credits: 10

Level: 7

When you’ll be taught: Summer (vacation) semester

Module convenor: Dr Michele Costola, email: m.costola@reading.ac.uk

Pre-requisite module(s):

Co-requisite module(s):

Pre-requisite or Co-requisite module(s):

Module(s) excluded:

Placement information: NA

Academic year: 2026/7

Available to visiting students: No

Talis reading list: No

Last updated: 25 March 2026

Overview

Module aims and purpose

Sustainability is part of corporate strategy as firms navigate resource pressures, social expectations, and the consequences of rapidly evolving business models. Businesses are expected to contribute to sustainable production and consumption patterns, yet they face tensions, trade-offs, and uncertainties that do not always have straightforward answers. This module examines how sustainability considerations interact with corporate objectives, financial constraints, and regulatory environments. Rather than offering ready-made solutions, the course encourages critical reflection on the dilemmas and contradictions that arise when firms try to align growth with environmental and social concerns. Students will engage with contemporary cases and debates to explore the complexity of sustainability issues in the business world.. 

Module learning outcomes

By the end of the module, it is expected that students will be able to:  

• Analyse how firms identify and prioritise sustainability issues within their strategic and operational decision-making, taking into account differences across institutional and economic contexts.
• Critically examine the tensions and trade-offs that arise when businesses integrate sustainability considerations alongside financial, regulatory, and competitive pressures.
• Assess the information and data required to evaluate sustainability risks, impacts, and opportunities, and understand the limitations and uncertainties inherent in such assessments.
• Evaluate how policy frameworks, market incentives, and innovations shape corporate responses to sustainability challenges, while recognising the constraints, unintended effects, and ambiguities that accompany them.

Module content

1. Identifying material sustainability issues in corporate strategy
2. Environmental sustainability challenges in business operations
3. Social sustainability and corporate responsibility
4. Growth, competition, and sustainability trade-offs
5. Sustainability in diverse economic contexts
6. Circular economy approaches and resource efficiency
7. Biodiversity, ecosystems, and supply chain dependencies
8. Sustainable production and consumption systems
9. Data, measurement, and uncertainty in sustainability assessment
10. Policy environments, incentives, and corporate responses

Structure

Teaching and learning methods

The topics are introduced in lectures which are then followed by seminars which allow for a deeper discussion of the concepts. 

Study hours

At least 30 hours of scheduled teaching and learning activities will be delivered in person, with the remaining hours for scheduled and self-scheduled teaching and learning activities delivered either in person or online. You will receive further details about how these hours will be delivered before the start of the module.

Please note the independent study hours above are notional numbers of hours; each student will approach studying in different ways. We would advise you to reflect on your learning and the number of hours you are allocating to these tasks.

Semester 1 The hours in this column may include hours during the Christmas holiday period.

Semester 2 The hours in this column may include hours during the Easter holiday period.

Summer The hours in this column will take place during the summer holidays and may be at the start and/or end of the module.

Assessment

Requirements for a pass

Students need to achieve an overall module mark of 50% to pass this module.

Summative assessment

Penalties for late submission of summative assessment

The Support Centres will apply the following penalties for work submitted late:

Assessments with numerical marks

• where the piece of work is submitted after the original deadline (or a DAS-agreed extension as a reasonable adjustment indicated in your Individual Learning Plan): 10% of the total marks available for that piece of work will be deducted from the mark for each calendar day (or part thereof) following the deadline up to a total of three calendar days;
• where the piece of work is submitted up to three calendar days after the original deadline (or a DAS-agreed extension as a reasonable adjustment indicated in you Individual Learning Plan), the mark awarded due to the imposition of the penalty shall not fall below the threshold pass mark, namely 40% in the case of modules at Levels 4-6 (i.e. undergraduate modules for Parts 1-3) and 50% in the case of Level 7 modules offered as part of an Integrated Masters or taught postgraduate degree programme;
• where the piece of work is awarded a mark below the threshold pass mark prior to any penalty being imposed, and is submitted up to three calendar days after the original deadline (or a DAS-agreed extension as a reasonable adjustment indicated in your Individual Learning Plan), no penalty shall be imposed;
• where the piece of work is submitted more than three calendar days after the original deadline (or a DAS-agreed extension as a reasonable adjustment indicated in your Individual Learning Plan): a mark of zero will be recorded.

Assessments marked Pass/Fail

• where the piece of work is submitted within three calendar days of the deadline (or a DAS-agreed extension as a reasonable adjustment indicated in your Individual Learning Plan): no penalty will be applied;
• where the piece of work is submitted more than three calendar days after the original deadline (or a DAS-agreed extension as a reasonable adjustment indicated in your Individual Learning Plan): a grade of Fail will be awarded.

Where a piece of work is submitted late after a deadline which has been revised owing to an extension granted through the Assessment Adjustments policy and process (self-certified or otherwise), it will be subject to the maximum penalty (i.e., considered to be more than three calendar days late). This will also apply when such an extension is used in conjunction with a DAS-agreed extension as a reasonable adjustment.

The University policy statement on penalties for late submission can be found at: https://www.reading.ac.uk/cqsd/-/media/project/functions/cqsd/documents/qap/penaltiesforlatesubmission.pdf

You are strongly advised to ensure that coursework is submitted by the relevant deadline. You should note that it is advisable to submit work in an unfinished state rather than to fail to submit any work.

Formative assessment

Formative assessment is any task or activity which creates feedback (or feedforward) for you about your learning, but which does not contribute towards your overall module mark.

Reassessment

Additional costs