Your company has been progressing nicely up the sustainability curve from compliance to cost savings. The next logical step is reputation and revenue generation, and itʼs here that many sustainability pros hit a roadblock. Without a CEO mandate, business units usually have little incentive to deviate from whatʼs been working in the past. Sustainability and CSR initiatives have safely been tucked away behind the scenes, dealing with internal and supply chain issues that reduce risk and cost to the business. Objections to customer-facing sustainability initiatives range from “Why put our neck out and riskgreenwashing charges?” to “Itʼs still a niche market” and “Why would we promote our values for commercial ends? Weʼre doing this because it’s right, not to make money from it.”
Despite the enthusiasm regarding sustainability expressed by the global business community, these organizations have been slow to address these issues when it comes to sustainable supply chain management, says a new study by the Business Performance Management (BPM) Forum and E2open that was conducted in the second quarter of this year. Operations, logistics and supply chain executives also lack the understanding of how to go green and save green across complex, global, multi-tiered supply and distribution networks. The study, titled “Acceleration of ECO-Operation: Achieving Success & Sustainability in the Supply Chain,” gained insights from more than 125 supply chain, operations, finance, and executive professionals around the world across multiple industries. It set out to measure and quantify how companies are managing the complexities of supply chain demands, distribution costs and environmental concerns. The study has major implications for supply chain, finance, operations, logistics, and procurement professionals and underscores the need for better ECO-Operation, sustainability measurement, and operations insight into multi-tiered supply chain networks.
The Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) recently published an online map that identifies and profiles more than 1,200 companies in key manufacturing states that they see as poised create new jobs when Congress passes a cap on global warming pollution. The interactive map spotlights companies located in manufacturing regions, including those in communities in the rust belt and coal country.
Green Corporate Strategies – Issues and Implementation from the Supply Management Perspective” delves into some of the definitions of “green” and “sustainability,” the drivers for green initiatives, the business case for green, recommendations for establishing internal and external green strategies, emerging standards and benchmarks, and information on “greenwashing.” It also includes a case study from The Auto Club Group and several Internet resources for further information.
