Post by jorinaparvin147 on Feb 24, 2024 23:46:23 GMT -5
At the height of his career in 1994, Ray Anderson, former CEO of carpet maker Interface, was asked by a client: "What is your company doing for the environment?" This question would come to define the rest of his life and what he would later call his “mid-course correction.” Anderson first discovered that Interface was doing more harm than good to the environment and described himself as a "looter." Awakened and urgently needing to set a new course for Interface, he committed the company to becoming the first environmentally sustainable and ultimately restorative carpet manufacturer, shaking the foundations of the oil-intensive carpet manufacturing industry in the process. From then on, he was on a quest to prove that sustainability was not only the right thing to do but also the smart thing to do. He set aggressive goals from scratch in many areas: Zero waste to landfill. Zero use of fossil fuel energy. Zero use of process water. Zero greenhouse gas emissions. Today, Interface is a “zero mission” company with zero environmental footprint. Anderson's story illuminates a visceral need at the heart of leadership: driving change for the better.
Faced daily with media reports about COVID-19, the resulting economic crisis, and the ongoing challenge of climate change, some corporate leaders today are wondering how much they can do and whether what they are doing is enough. When it comes to sustainability, despite genuine interest, many still suffer from collective inertia, waiting or waiting for other companies or governments to respond; just not knowing where to start; or not fully recognizing the difference they could make. After numerous interviews with C-suite executives, senior managers, and a Job Function Email List host of employees from dozens of publicly traded companies around the world, the research of C.B. Bhattacharya , author and H.J. Zoffer Chair in Sustainability at the Katz Graduate School of Business, University of Pittsburgh, revealed that the senior leaders who make real progress on the sustainability front are those who approach it with what organizational psychologists refer to as an ownership mindset. Simply put: they “own” the problem and then extend and instill feelings of ownership and connection throughout their organization and to the external world.
Property is an inherent part of the human condition: we are what we have. Jean-Paul Sartre. By taking ownership of sustainability and instilling that sense of ownership among colleagues across the organization and beyond, leaders can create meaningful solutions to the complex problems we face today. The journey toward sustainability ownership varies from leader to organization. But we can get a useful insight into these journeys through the stories of path-finding CEOs, some of whom CB Bhattacharya interviewed for my latest book, Small Actions, Big Difference (Routledge, October 2019). Below, you'll find lessons from the travels of Enel CEO Francesco Starace, former Coca-Cola Enterprises chairman and CEO John F. Brock, and former Unilever CEO Paul Polman, each of whom illustrates different facets of the dramatic and the dramatic. Lasting impact that can emerge when leaders own sustainability. As you read their stories, ask yourself: What would your particular quest look like and how will you recognize it? We share CB Bhattacharya's interviews with you. On facing reality with a purpose: CEO of Enel Francesco Starace, CEO of Enel, a company transformed under his leadership from a large traditional electricity company into a renewable energy powerhouse, told me a story from the 1980s, when he was still a middle manager, in a remote corner of the Middle East, building a power plant with a team of engineers. His company at the time transported crude oil to fuel the plant, one truck at a time.