The Business of Sustainability

Ray Anderson is a true pioneer, and yet still surprisingly relatively unknown considering his absolutely remarkable accomplishments.

Hopefully his book can raise his own profile amongst other 'non-practicing' businesses and lead as a peer example.

Great article. Bring on part two.


http://davidcoethica.wordpress.com

Adopting more sustainable business practices boosts bottom line results, if companies are prepared to capitalize on the potential opportunity:

1.) Redesigning the production process to reduce the output of carbon dioxide often reduces the amount of waste and scrap that goes to the landfill. This in turn cuts the cost of raw materials and power used to produce the product and saves money. For example, Monsanto made major changes to multiple plants in the 1980’s and 1990’s in response to the Clean Water Act, and the changes paid off quickly: They ended up with a lower cost structure than their competitors, and their products were more pure and reliable.

2.) A sustainable product often commands a premium price. Many consumers are willing to pay a little more to know they are buying a product that is safe, from a company that cares. The higher price goes directly toward a more robust bottom line. The challenge is knowing which of your customers are willing to pay more, and how much more they will pay.

3.) If the sustainability practices are well-communicated to the customer, they can increase market share and customer loyalty, as Method and Seventh Generation have found. Sometimes market share is the strongest benefit.

4.) Sometimes changes in business practices can pay off in multiple and subtle ways: for example, Wal*Mart started a “daylighting” program to open up skylights in their stores. They discovered that the skylights reduced electric bills for lighting – and they also found that merchandise displayed under natural lighting sold better than if the same merchandise was placed elsewhere in the store, under artificial light.

Many companies in many industries have found that sustainability pays – if you pick the right sustainability projects and communicate their value proposition to your customers. It takes excellent customer communication to benefit from stronger pricing, greater loyalty, or increased market share. This is the key to sustainability programs that really work.

Brodwin & Associates
www.brodwin.com

David Connor's absolutely right. I've had the pleasure of meeting Ray on a couple of occasions and he, and the story of Interface's transformation, are hugely inspirational.

What I particularly love about Ray is how he always introduces himself as an industrialist - as competitive and profit-minded as the next guy. He's not some pie-in-the-sky idealist; he's a pragmatist who just happens to be way ahead of the curve in recognising the business value of sustainability.

His experience gives the lie to myth that sustainability and profitability are somehow mutually exclusive. Quite the contrary, the increasing significance of sustainability marks it out as a critical driver of innovation and value creation.

http://danmgray.wordpress.com

While on the surface this article is about how a manufacturing company found profitability by going green, what I found interesting was the leadership example.

When a clear and articulated vision and its goal are communicated effectively, it can work to motivate stakeholders towards higher purpose. This example stresses the importance of timing and commitment, while revealing the importance of systemic thinking. It’s also illustrates how not just people can become effective leaders, but companies and organizations as well.

www.questusstrategies.com