PUBLISHED 05/2020
BLOG - SUSTAINABILITY AND LEADERSHIP
An invitation for SUSTAINABILITY & LEADERSHIP. What would you share with the next generation of leaders?
A couple months ago, I was with the next generation of leaders at ESSEC Business School for a course of Sustainability & Leadership. Now that we are facing a deep global crisis, I believe that what I did share with them could be shared with everyone, as sustainability in business has never been so relevant. Time has come for us to change the way we live and act. Can the Covid-19 be the ultimate reset button for us to reinvent the way we do business?
1. WE ARE AT A TIPPING POINT
There is a profound disruption happening in our society. We are together all united to fight the pandemic. Can the spirit of collaboration and solidarity be a call for the next chapter of our economy? You, as the first generation, are begging for change. You know what is at stake. You are willing to play a more proactive role in societal issues. The world is off track to take care of 10 billion people within our planet boundaries, the world will go through a deep economic crisis. There is no plan B. We need to transform the system and invent together new journeys. I have a lot of hope, because you, the next generation of leaders, are craving for change. Playing a role in society needs to become core, core to everyone’s agenda.
2. BUSINESS BUILDING BETTER FUTURES
Can business develop human-centered approach and increase its positive social impact, beyond compliance with basic standards? As an activist in business, I believe that companies will need to embrace positive change, or they will be left behind. Our economy is being reinvented. While some industries were struggling for growth before the lockdown, B Corp companies purpose driven and solutions focused are being trusted and growing. You, as millennials, are already counting for more than 1/3 of total consumption. You are 97% to look for brands that have a positive impact. This is not a trend, there is a revolution happening. Business with a positive footprint will thrive.
3. PURPOSE AND BUSINESS AS ONE AGENDA
We need to build a new kind of economy. There is no trade off between doing good business and doing good to society. Whatever the contribution is for a better planet, better lives, inclusion; organizations that succeed have one thing in common: ONE agenda, an integrated agenda, a business agenda with clear targets their contribution to societal issues. Companies creating shared value will be chosen by employees, citizens and investors. Some pioneer companies have shown the way: the Danone 2030 Company Goals, Unilever Sustainable Living Plan, Carrefour Act for Food, Nestlé Shared Value, M&S Plan A along many others.
4. ACT. TIME IS ABOUT ACTION
It is time to act, for today and for tomorrow. The question is not about sustainability or not sustainability, the question is how we can accelerate. We all know the reason “why”. We are shaping the “what”. What will make the difference is the “how”. We need to act, to demonstrate that we stand by the people we serve. How companies are responding to the Covid challenges will be critical for their future. It is not static, we learn by doing. The world needs dreamers, and the world needs doers. But above all the world needs dreamers who do.
5. THE POWER OF COLLABORATION
Once this pandemic will end, we are going to need extreme collaboration, so that together we can create a more resilient economy. Health and social bonds have never been so important to all of us. How can companies empower their people, partners and friends to be part of the journey? This paradigm shift of culture is essential to best impact. People will feel stronger, more passionate and proactive. We need to acknowledge that “no” company can do it alone. We need to act collectively to impact at scale and transform the way we operate. We need a system change, not only than individual company change. We need both because they are interdependent. Business must put partnership at the very heart to create new economic model.
6. TOWARDS NEW LEADERSHIP SKILLS
Having a clear understanding of what needs to be done, being accountable, decisive, and the ability to drive profitable growth is not enough. We need more. We need progressive leaders to make it happen. And above all, we need leaders with the right mindset to empower the people to make it happen. Today, the pioneer leaders are ready to drive an integrated agenda forward to best contribute to UN Sustainable Development Goals. We need the people that are making this goal a reality. We need to empower the leaders, the change makers, the activists in business, obsessed by the contribution of business to a better world, by the impact of their work in society. We need leaders leading with convictions, showing courage with empathy, early makers of business as a force for good, connected to what matters for the future generations.
7. LISTEN TO YOUR INNER VOICE
It is not about what you want to be, it is about what you really really want to be? Listen to your inner voice. Choose your utopia, choose your cause, and find the role and organization that will match your agenda. Choose the people, the culture, the individuals you wish to collaborate with. Choose your own path, there are so many different ways to contribute to a better world. Want to become an entrepreneur? To join a family owned business -where beyond profitable growth, the choices for the next generations are critical? To contribute to companies with bigger footprint as you are obsessed by the scale of the transformation? To act in a foundation, NGOs? To set new financial mechanisms and incentives as an investor or policy maker?
Every choice counts for the transformation of our economy. Because YOU matter. As individual, YOU have the power to change the world.
