Top ten business values of sustainable development
Why are businesses and business leaders increasingly paying attention and attention to sustainability?
In what ways can sustainable development bring value to enterprises? We know that sustainable development refers to “development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.”
For commercial enterprises, this means taking appropriate strategies and actions to While meeting the current development needs of enterprises and stakeholders, we must also protect, maintain and enhance human resources and natural resources to meet the needs of future development of enterprises.
Implementing a sustainable development strategy can bring value to enterprises in at least the following ten aspects.
1. Reduce costs and risks.
Controlling cost and increasing profit is the only interest for all companies.
Sustainable developments is the best mechanism to reduce costs, by optimum utilizing of resources (such as raw materials, energy, Hazardous materials, human resources, water resources, etc.),
improve process efficiency, reduce or eliminate waste, etc. to reduce costs and risks for enterprises. For example: Unilever’s sustainable action plan has saved more than 600 million euros in energy costs since 2008 by reducing waste and reducing the use of energy, raw materials and natural resources. DuPont saved $3 billion over 15 years by reducing energy use and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
2. Protect production resources.
More and more companies have realized that the raw materials that support the production of their products are under threat.
A key element of sustainable business practices is to promote the protection of resources to ensure the continued operation of the company.
Gain long-term value.
For example, Natura, This plan has protected 257,000 hectares of forest and also ensured the safety of the company’s raw materials. Source locally.
In the seven years from 2010 to 2017, Natura accumulated more than 1.2 billion reais (approximately RMB 1.62 billion) in additional local income.
3. Go beyond compliance and gain a leading edge.
Today, companies must comply with more and more supervision, regulations and standards, and the areas are becoming wider and wider, including pollution emissions, employee safety, product content, technical performance, labeling, recycling and ecosystem protection, etc.
Sustainable business practices can encourage companies to proactively seek new opportunities, take action before regulatory requirements, and avoid the risk of being punished due to passive reactions.
In fact, proactive actions that go beyond compliance may sometimes affect policy formulation and create technical barriers, putting companies in an advantageous position and gaining more value.
4. Change the image and enhance brand value.
Intangible and tangible values of an enterprise can be highlight the relationship amount them through Sustainable development.
Regardless of size, any enterprises of different industries, can upgrade their corporate image, reshape their brands and reputation.
For example, under Cook’s leadership, Apple has prioritized addressing climate change, making product materials more environmentally friendly, and helping to protect the earth’s resources.
It has increased investment in environmental protection through renewable energy plans, closed-loop supply chain management, and sustainable development.
A series of sustainable development business practices such as sustainable forest development, and the implementation of environmental protection policies in energy use, product raw materials, supply chain management, product packaging, etc. have made
Best environmentally friendly technology company is the Apple popular in whole world. Apple’s market value was also determined by Steve Jobs The US$300 billion in the era has increased to US$1.21 trillion now, a fourfold increase.
5. Seize new business and development opportunities.
Human beings are facing global social and ecological problems such as climate change, resource depletion, environmental pollution, social equity, etc.
Sustainable development can promote business innovation to solve these challenging problems and provide enterprises with Bring new business and development opportunities.
Research by the Business and Sustainable Development Council shows that achieving sustainable development goals in the four fields of food and agriculture, cities, energy and materials, and health and welfare is estimated to bring market opportunities of at least US$12 trillion per year by 2030. , and create 380 million new jobs. The “Today’s Equity (Patrimonio Hoy)” sustainable development plan launched by CEMEX, a Mexican cement manufacturing company, while helping to solve the social problem of housing for low-income families in Mexico and South America, also enabled the company to receive a monthly income of 15% performance growth.
6. Meet consumer needs.
Nowadays, there are more and more environmentally conscious consumers, and they hope that the products they buy can not only meet green standards, but also meet product needs.
A previous survey by the British polling agency Ipsos-MORI showed that more than half of the respondents said “they prefer to buy products and services provided by companies with a good reputation for environmental protection.” In addition to consumers, more and more companies are also willing to conduct business with socially and environmentally responsible companies.
7. Improve stakeholder relations.
There are consumers, government agencies, investors, financial institutions, non-governmental organizations, business partners, etc. are increasingly requiring companies to provide information on sustainable development, which not only includes the company’s own operations information, including suppliers, and sometimes even the supplier’s supplier information needs to be disclosed.
A sustainable development strategy can make companies more willing to contact, listen to feedback from various groups and form partnerships with them, thereby reducing friction and conflicts with stakeholders and gaining social support for the development of new projects or other business activities.
Approval or support that makes it easier for businesses to pursue and achieve their goals.
8. Attract and retain outstanding talents.
Just as consumers express their choices by purchasing goods, more and more talented people are making career choices based on a company’s reputation for social responsibility and sustainable development.
Recruitment service company Global Monster found in a survey that 80% of respondents said they were interested in doing work that has a positive impact on the environment, and 92% said they would prefer to work for environmentally friendly companies.
A survey of its MBA students by the Stanford Graduate School of Business also found that 97% of the students said they would be willing to give up 14% of their expected income if they could work for a company with an excellent reputation for social responsibility and ethics.
More companies have realized this and are making sustainable development a priority, doing their best to attract and retain outstanding talents, thereby improving their innovation and competitiveness.
9. Attract capital investment.
Investors and shareholders are paying more and more attention to the sustainable development of enterprises.
A survey of investors by PricewaterhouseCoopers showed that about 80% of the respondents said that they had issues related to sustainable development are taken into consideration in their investment decisions.
A study by the investment bank Goldman Sachs Group on six industries including energy, mining, steel, food, beverages, and media found that the stock prices of companies that are leading in environmental, social and governance aspects exceed the stock market average by 25%. A survey of 210 U.S.
corporate financial executives by ING also showed that 65% of companies with comprehensive sustainability frameworks have had their credit ratings improved in the past two years.
With the gradual popularity of socially responsible investing, the increase in industry standards such as the Dow Jones Index, FTSE Index, and the Equator Principles, as well as the inclusion of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) issues in investment analysis, environmental and social indicators have become an integral part of credit risk assessment.
of standard components, sustainable businesses are more likely to attract funding from banks and investors.
10. Improve recognition and increase market share.
Sustainability labels can enhance brand recognition and differentiate your business. Businesses can benefit from ensuring the loyalty of existing customers and attracting new customers through sustainable development, or they can increase revenue and increase market share through new markets for sustainable products and services. Among the “sustainable life” brands developed by Unilever to address different social or environmental issues, 26 brands including Dove, Lipton, Hellmann’s and NetSeven have continued to exceed Unilever’s average growth rate, achieving Grow faster.
Surviving and thriving, and striving to be a sustainable business, I think is what every business organization wants to achieve.
To achieve such a goal, enterprises must rationally use their limited resources, balance the relationships between all stakeholders, different resources (including natural resources, human resources, social resources, manufacturing resources and financial resources, etc.) and short-term and long-term interests, and strive to make the value created exceed the resources consumed. Sustainable development is the “golden key” to solving current global problems, and the participation of enterprises is crucial. In the process of practicing sustainable development, business organizations, in addition to paying attention to the commercial value of sustainable development, also need to take responsibility and through innovation While reaping benefits from solutions, we should also be committed to solving global problems and jointly create a better future.
In order to help everyone better understand the basic concepts of sustainable development and its business value, and understand how to integrate sustainable development into corporate strategies and implement sustainable development projects in the organization, we have launched the “Basics of Corporate Sustainability Management” course. Everyone is welcome to discuss and exchange together.