The people, social, or human capital bottom line pertains to fair and beneficial business practices toward labour and the community and region in which a corporation conducts its business. A TBL business would not use child labour (and monitor all contracted companies for child labour exploitation), would pay fair salaries to its workers, would maintain a safe work environment and tolerable working hours, and would not otherwise exploit a community or its labour force. A TBL business also typically seeks to "give back" by contributing to the strength and growth of its community with such things as health care and education. 

Measurable markers for the level of social sustainability could be:

• Unemployment rate.

• Female labour force participation rate.

• Median household income.

• Relative poverty.

• % of the population with higher education.

• Average commute time.

• Violent crime rate per capita.

• Life expectancy rate.

Environmental sustainability focuses on the viability and normal functioning of natural systems potentially affected by a business. A TBL business would ensure minimal impact on air and water quality, reduce its energy consumption to a minimum, use natural resources responsibly, manage hazardous waste carefully (and produce as little as possible) and use and cover land responsibly.

Measurable markers for the level of environmental sustainability could be:

• Sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxide concentrations

• Fossil fuel consumption

• Electrical consumption

In a sustainability framework, the profit needs to be seen as the real economic benefit enjoyed by the host society. It is the real economic impact the organization has on its economic environment, and not just the economic benefit to the company or organisation. This section is often confused to be limited to the internal profit made by a company or organization.

Economic progress is often evaluated in terms of wealth - measured in a society's ability to pay for goods and services consumed. Thus, many governments' economic policies typically seek to enhance income and induce more efficient production and consumption of goods and services.

“Trickle down economics” or “trickle down theory” is the economic political argument that the increases in wealth of the rich are good for the poor because some of the additional wealth will eventually trickle down to the middle class and poor. Does this fit within the TBL sustainable development theory?

Measurable markers for the level of economic sustainability could be:

• Distribution of income levels and purchasing power

• Growth of employment opportunities.

• Tax contributions.

• Competition levels.

• Contribution to GDP.