Embedding Sustainability in the Core

Abstract

There’s no such thing as a sustainability strategy; there is only a business strategy that is—or isn’t—sustainable in the long term. For sustainability to be anchored in a company, it needs to be embedded in the core business including business models, value propositions, value chains, portfolio integration, R&D, and empowered organizations. Leadership starts at the top but empowering people and delegating responsibility makes sustainability everyone’s job. By revisiting the value proposition from a sustainability perspective, you can grow the benefits that a company’s products and services deliver to customers and differentiate it from similar offerings. Swedish companies Scania, Northvolt, Electrolux, Houdini, Axel-Johnson, and EQT share how they’ve successfully integrated sustainability across their businesses to find that sustainability and profitability nexus.