Let's Dream About Quebec with Anie Rouleau: businesses, the beating hearts of our communities
When asked how she imagines Quebec in a few years, Anie Rouleau, President and Founder of The Unscented Company, depicts a Quebec in which we want to live. With all the pragmatism and passion of an entrepreneur who has rooted her company in her deep desire to find a solution to a societal problem, Anie Rouleau reexamined with us the place of the citizen in the modern company. Her vision of a Quebec where businesses are the beating heart of vibrant communities is one that appeals to all of us, whether as employees, managers, researchers, consumers, neighbors, parents... in short, as citizens.
A new business reality
We began our interview with Anie by asking about the trends we are seeing in organizations today. It is clear that recent events related to the pandemic, war, the effects of climate change and a growing awareness of the absurdity of certain practices, are forcing organizations to make profound transitions in their business models and in their way of doing things.
The workspace has also been challenged. Ultra-connectivity, mental health awareness, and the need for employees to contribute to something bigger than themselves, are all contextual elements that companies must consider. Add to this the environmental drama that we must collectively address, and it becomes clear that sustainability is a must in the business world. Anie even predicts that organizations that do not take these issues into account will soon become obsolete.
How to bridge the gap between social impact and business practices? Together, we explored the levers for private organizations.
Reaching the complete citizen
This is a central point of our discussion with Anie. Indeed, throughout our discussion, the place of the citizen in the company was constantly questioned.
She sees a pressing need for a paradigm shift in the design of products and services on the one hand, and, on the other, in the very definition of the business model, in the choice of operational models, and in corporate practices throughout the value chain. The change that needs to be made is the transition from a corporate model centered on the customer - the one who buys - to a model centered on the citizen - the one who lives in our neighborhood.
By putting the citizen at the center, it makes us look at society and all our stakeholders differently and gives us another perspective on customers, suppliers, researchers, investors, shareholders, and other business partners. Integrating this notion of citizen does not mean limiting ourselves to thinking of the end user of the product as a citizen, but rather repositioning all our business practices to meet the needs of the citizen beyond the need for the product itself. The citizen lives beyond our product, and we contribute to this living environment. How do we make this happen That's the question to ask.
Anie highlights the strength of citizen mobilization when institutions are overwhelmed by events. We can already observe that citizens are mobilized in the face of numerous social problems (health system failures, natural disasters, refugee relief, etc.) and we can suspect that this commitment will only be more pronounced when the effects of climate change impact citizens more and more directly. The company can then become a lever to concretize this mobilization, whether it is through jobs that contribute to the construction of more resilient communities, through products that have a positive economic impact and limited negative environmental effects, or by offering citizens, when they are in a position of decision-maker, responsible and local business partners who care about the same living environment.
Government as a powerful lever
It is with fervor that Anie shares with us her wish to see the government encourage businesses that are concretely committed to finding solutions to societal problems. Whether it is through investments in research and development local procurement policies, or funding for minority groups to run their own businesses there would for both society and the environment. Today, she sees a need to rethink taxation for businesses that are concretely committed to the common good and to strengthening the economic and community fabric of Quebec.
An emphasis on research? Anie says yes, but some basic assumptions should be made. It seems obvious that research is an undisputed ally in the search for sustainable development solutions. For Anie, however, there are a few principles that must be addressed when undertaking such a collaboration. The objectives must be extremely clear as should be the motivation. The business and research worlds need to talk and be creative together: the best plastic bottle is the one that
doesn't exist. It is even better than the one made from recycled materials, especially since the material for the bottles sometimes come from another continent.
Anie's message to researchers is twofold: research with the aim of developing circular economy solutions that do not have other camouflaged environmental consequences and solutions that will create jobs here. The research would generate a win-win result if it has in its primary premise the best interests of the local collective while taking into account all the issues associated with the research topic.
The undeniable power of the local approach
Anie advocates a local approach for her organization, whether for research or supplies. The impact must be in our communities, here in Quebec. With a sourcing policy that is highly influenced by the geographic distance of its suppliers (85% of her suppliers are within 500km of the head office in Ville Emard), The Unscented Company demonstrated the robustness and resilience of an organization relying on local suppliers during the Covid 19 crisis. It became clear in that time of supply chain upheaval, that having its suppliers at a safe distance was a strong asset compared to its competitors.
"I continued to roll the Quebec economy in the midst of the pandemic when others were waiting for their stalled supply chains."
Beyond the ability to continue supplying, staying local kept many more Quebecers employed. Five companies kept their doors open during the pandemic in part because of the activities of The Unscented Company. The implementation and enforcement of policies that emphasis local commitment strengthen the local economic fabric. Anie works on the economic resilience of her own organization, and also on her ecosystem on a more holistic level. This is critical because no business operates in a vacuum. And if we add to this the previously discussed idea of putting the citizen, our community neighbor, at the center of the economic model, it is clear that the local approach would support them at the same time. The question for business leaders would then be: who are the citizens we support, beyond our employees?
With local commitment, innovation is at the doorstep. It's much easier to sit around a table with local suppliers, researchers, and other partners to rethink the industry, address shared problems, and find solutions that benefit everyone, including the community. This is true for most societal issues, whether they are social (employment, health, economic inclusion...) or environmental (pollution, transportation, end of life products...).
Using the corporation as a lever anchors ourselves in the community makes the company a true community actor, an idea that is very close to Anie's heart. Aligning community engagement initiatives by working as locally as possible to bring suppliers back to communities, rethinking practices with local researchers, making long-term philanthropic commitments to organizations that share the same values and objectives for our communities, offering employees volunteer
time for these same organizations, intervening in schools and universities to raise awareness of responsible purchasing... all these actions strengthen the relationship between private companies and communities. Anie also points out that encouraging her team to go out into the community to do good contributes to the community beyond the company's activities and limits. It's a virtuous circle.
Societal engagement, more accessible than ever
Societal engagement is "not even a question" for Anie anymore. Getting involved and rethinking practices has been made accessible today. The availability of information, examples, case studies, and funding, no longer makes it possible to feign ignorance. Moreover, if the business model is not based at least in part on a societal consideration, the company exposes itself to missing out on business opportunities, financing, partnerships, markets, as well as to showing disrespect to the next generation. This lack of respect, Anie sees it in terms of the environment of course, but not only: what economy, what opportunities, what jobs do we want to leave to our children?
She recognizes that there is a cost to making such a commitment, but that it is a cost that is quickly recouped. Managers and entrepreneurs would benefit from perhaps "putting less in their pockets temporarily" and consider the long term payoff. The repeated invitations she receives from investors to testify about the integration of the environment into business models make her assert that there is strong interest on their part to understand how to detect companies that are "really committed". In the near future, companies will have no choice but to demonstrate their social and environmental impact.
The economic benefits of being committed are not only to be seen in the direct profits on products, but also in the hidden costs, such as in the retention of employees. Let's remember that on average, the departure of an employee costs the company a full year's salary.
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A step-by-step commitment
The metaphor used by Anie to talk to us about societal engagement is telling: when a professional athlete starts training, does he dream of a gold medal? Yes. Does a mountain climber dream of climbing Everest? Possibly. Do they both think they'll make it next weekend? Certainly not.
Societal engagement is about small steps, lists of possibilities, strategy, prioritization, wins, learning, collaboration. It starts with planting the tree that will take the longest to grow when building a garden. The good news in all of this, Anie encourages, is that today there are specialized firms to help you prioritize these actions, choose which seed to plant, when, under what conditions. It is not a matter of doing everything at once, but of going step by step. This commitment will bear fruit and have repercussions beyond what you think.
Examples from large companies such as Danone or Nestlé show that it is possible, even in complex and extensive business models, by taking the issues one at a time. They will not be irreproachable in their practices overnight, but we see, for example, companies within these groups certifying B corp little by little, one commitment at a time.
She also emphasizes that this path is never finished as we can always do more. She shares with us her current questions about justice, equality, diversity, and inclusion. In Canada, we tend to think that these issues do not affect us, that our society is already inclusive and egalitarian, but there is still a lot to do, both in our institutions and in our companies. On these issues, she insists on the need to take action, to model, and not just talk about it.
The key to this approach, even if it is taken step by step, is a clear commitment from the top of the organization. If the commitment comes from the teams, it will take much more effort than if the head of the organization commits. The lesson Anie shares from her experience is that it is an infinitely contagious commitment. She has seen it with her employees, her customers, but also with her suppliers. The enthusiasm and dynamism is infectious. In her words: "When you get up in the morning and tell yourself that you have replaced petroleum with beet in a product, you get butterflies in your stomach on your way to work". Who wouldn't?
When we talk to her about the labor shortage in Quebec, she answers with a smile "I don't see it! This is one of the proofs of the long term payoff to commitment that she mentioned earlier. Giving meaning to the company by positioning its mission in response to societal issues is attractive, even to potential candidates.
The power of collaboration
Many problems would be solved if all those facing them addressed them together. Anie talks about natural associations that could be formed to address societal issues, but she also mentions the reluctance of some competitors to enter into discussions. She does not lose hope, however, that better communication and coordination could emerge so that everyone takes their place and together we find solutions to problematic practices.
Opening a dialogue with the stakeholders of your organization is a good start.
" We all have the same issues when we get up in the morning but we don't talk about them.”
To conclude...
In a few words, here are the winning choices for companies that want to engage these transitions:
In this way, private enterprises can participate in the emergence of communities in which our children will want to stay because there will be interesting job opportunities, which will make sense, and which will combine innovation and anchoring in economically and socially stronger communities.
More than just living here, we want to contribute to this Quebec that Anie portrays for our common future, whether it is by creating more responsible products and services, by contributing to innovation or simply by using these solutions as informed consumers... in short by simply being a citizen.
Anie Rouleau in a few words
Anie is the founder of The Unscented Company, a B corp since 2015 that is enjoying great success with its fragrance-free cleaning and personal care products. Making a social and environmental impact was in The Unscented Company's DNA from the beginning. Today, the company distributes its products mainly through Canada and the United States and keeps as a pet project, pursuing alternatives to single-use plastic.
To say that Anie's entrepreneurial spirit and community involvement have long roots is an understatement. She grew up in a family of entrepreneurs who were very involved in their community, whether it be for events, cultural activities or solidarity actions. Their openness and generosity marked her youth as much as her entrepreneurial passion.
Written by Delphine Orfila
Published on April, 25th 2023