In the age of financial meltdown, does sustainability matter?

I was in the UK at a CIO workshop last week (post coming up), and missed a lot of the on -going maneuvering on the part of both political parties here in the US. It made me think about sustainability market drivers (again; yes, I need a life...), and whether we have turned the corner from sustainability as a 'vitamin' (nice to have), or an 'aspirin' (critical need).

Right now, I would guess that most people (consumers) and many corporations are focusing on very tactical and survival -based activities, such as cost control and risk / exposure management. Where sustainability programs are already established, there is probably little impact from the financial crisis, in terms of potential termination, cancellation, etc.

But where sustainability initiatives are being considered or reviewed, I would venture that many will be put on hold for the time being, as corporations sort through on - going programs and rank and prioritize those that are truly 'mission critical' for short term goals.

But there may be a silver lining.

One could say that the current populism will engender more awareness of social impacts associated with current and projected modes of doing business. That could feed into more interest in sustainability as the template of conducting business: doing what is right (do no evil?), taking care of your employees and those who are affected / involved in your business, and developing strategy & inititiaves for promoting long term viability.

Another potential benefit: whoever becomes president, there is no doubt (in my mind) that we are entering a new age of regulatory oversight. I believe that the 'wave' of rule - making for the financial markets will spill over to other industries / sectors, and will include new environmental and social metrics.

Some may see additional regulation as anathema to the overall concept of sustainability, but as I have posted before on crisis management (link), sustainability will not be adopted by the majority of corporations until such time that: they have to incorporate programs to be competitive; or, they have to comply with new regulations. Indeed, if you view the UK and Europe, sustainability adoption is due to stringent new rules in building design & construction, consumer product design, and waste recycling; all driving much more awareness (and acceptance) in the local populations.

There. Anybody feel better about the current mess we are in? Read more!

Executive CSR roles & pay are growing...

A recent article from the UK indicated that corporate CSR roles have grown significantly, along with pay scale; link is here.

This certainly a promising trend; the key is to encourage / empower these CSR executives to be part of the decision making process at a corporate level. MBOs could include:

- Increased profitability from effective material use and workflow (use of lifecycle cost assessment tools to measure and optimize processes)

- Increased positive brand awareness; measured by feedback from focus groups, advisory & customer panels, stakeholder input

- Effective risk management: compliance with governmental and NGO standards; increased ROI on risk mgt expenditures

- Identification and development of new business lines that embrace sustainable principles

I am sure there are others, but if the executives are not involved in critical corporate decisions, then their roles will be relegated to more of the "EHS" roles of the past 20 years, which were non - mission critical...

Read more!