Less appetite for green initiatives?
May 28, 2008
It is also noted that companies that have made a great deal of their environmental policies are unlikely to back down on them. Especially those companies that deal with consumers can not afford to lose their face. They will now put more emphasis on the notion that being green can safe money, says the FT.
Some argue that the UK is leading the sustainability agenda both in politics and in business. Does this imply that other countries will be facing a similar trend to slip into reverse gear? And what lessons can be drawn from all of this? Of course other countries run a similar risk, but they should be open to three lessons:
The first lesson is that no organisation or politician should be long on communicating on sustainability while short on actual progress. Sustainability is too important for reputational balloons and political gallery play. Communication without substance will always lead to unhappy audiences.
The second lesson is that, as we have always promoted, a sustainability agenda should be built on value creation (cost reduction, increase of turn over, optimisation of cost of capital). Sustainability will never be more than a hobby horse if it lacks the value creation perspective. Hobby horses get killed in an economic down-turn, cash cows will be cherished even more!
The third lessons is that sustainability requires leadership. Knowing what you want to achieve, being able to get this message across and staying power in the execution are needed to make a difference.
We believe sustainable entrepreneurship is here to stay. We are convinced that we can help business and politics to find robust ways towards progress also when the economic cycle is less rosy. Or would you prefer to sit and wait?
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