What a fabulous discussion filled with dynamic, thought-provoking perspectives! Here are my thoughts in relation to what was discussed.
88% of boards view sustainability as an opportunity for innovation and key to future-proofing businesses. But this could be a double-edged sword – is it window dressing that will be seen or is sustainability central to the way their respective businesses operate?
I agree with Filip that seeing sustainability as an opportunity for businesses is the easy part. But, it isn’t enough to transition to a net-zero sustainable development future. Corporations need to engage in voluntary activities and go beyond what is legally required. Or else, their social license to operate may very well be threatened along with a contest to legitimacy.
It all starts from the very TOP – boards need to RETHINK their businesses and find ways to integrate social & environmental issues at the centre of their corporate strategy & purpose. They need to ensure their businesses are versatile and can adapt to provide for development with appropriate management practices in place to stay within our planetary boundaries. Su Yin also made it a poignant point to involve HR from the onset when tackling sustainability. This department is wholly about people, and they are the very foundation that can permeate the call for action throughout the whole organisation through every employee.
I fully concur with Donna who stressed that getting competitors in the room is also important, not just our own. The fact is net zero and sustainable development changes are complex & systemic in nature. Hence, addressing these are not possible for organisations working in silos. It is essential to develop new forms of collaboration across sectors (businesses, governments & civil society) and between businesses that might not traditionally work together (be it from different industries or even competitors within the same industry). This is how we create new collective visions and foster information sharing which is nothing short of powerful that can guide innovation and connect dots in ways that enable increasingly complex wicked problems as such to be addressed.
BUT, one major barrier is limited technical knowledge required to implement & execute change. Training & coordination is thus needed at all levels from stakeholders right up to management. Learning needs to be upscaled in order to ask the right questions which Donna spoke about at length. When leaders speak to those on the ground, ask good questions and listen to what they have to say, they make effective decisions. A good leader will then take this information back to the boardroom, think about it carefully, formulate a course of action and decisively go forward with it.
The time is now, and it is up to us to be the agents of change, regardless of our position in society. It is easy to free ride on the efforts of others, but like Tesco’s motto says, “Every Little Helps.”
#Kantar #Sustainability
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