The Sustainability Process

When we talk about sustainability today, we think that it is something that is to come in the future, but the current environmental scenario and even the current market scenario dictates quite differently. We have to come to a very clear understanding that sustainability is not a future, it is the present; it is the now.

Sustainability has actually become quite important because the future is dependent on our investment into it. Before we go down this road, we have to understand certain things about sustainability.

NOT AN EVENT BUT A VALUE CHAIN

Sustainability is not an event. It's not one particular output but sustainability has to be addressed as a value chain.

Any product or service that is going to become more sustainable needs to address what happens before its production and what happens after its use. The entire value chain needs to be considered because you do not want a sustainable event but you want a sustainable value chain. We cannot have a sustainable event coming out of unsustainable surroundings. Hence we have got to address the questions and challenges. This drives the reasoning on why do we have to think about sustainability as a value chain.

INNOVATION AND INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY

One of the things that is very clear when you start looking at the data is that sustainability is good for business because it brings in greater innovation. And greater innovation means better access to technology, better access to patents. When you look at that in totality it brings about a betterment on the bottom line and society as a whole.

It is also very clear that sustainability which brings about greater innovation enhances and brings about new market opportunities. One of the things that is noticeable is that when people work on sustainability as a value chain, we have a spillover effect which impacts other industries and businesses that opens up new market opportunities.

NEW JOBS

It’s also fairly clear that sustainability and sustainable business practices is going to kill some of the old jobs. It is also a reality that whenever we have moved forward within any market space in the world or we have actually brought about more innovation, we have seen that new jobs have already taken their place before the old jobs are killed.

You find the replacement effect happening in a much more staggered and maybe in a much better flow if we are ready to accept the change. The challenge comes when we do not accept the change and that’s when we think that any kind of innovation kills old jobs.

BRAND VALUE AND GOODWILL

It is very clear that when you look at sustainability and the business around it, it brings about a couple of things to the table at the very outset. One it drives foresight within businesses, within groups because you're driving for the future and you're trying to find ways to get better. The other thing is that it enhances brand value and goodwill.

Any person who has been in business long enough will tell you that any kind of activity that enhances not just the product but also the experience of customers and makes them feel as a part of the journey, brings about better value for the brand as well as better valuation in terms of the goodwill.

PROPER MEASUREMENT

One of the things that is now getting more and more important is that we need to have a better measurement of sustainability as a whole. We cannot ignore the fact that this is one of the challenge areas because you need to look at numbers and when you look at the data and then it becomes far more important and easier to accept the logic behind sustainability and sustainable practises. When we talk about measurement of sustainability today, we have to accept that when we are doing that, we have to pay attention to the value chain and not merely the event. That's precisely one of the challenges that is being faced by businesses today. Industry standards have to catch up to the world and it has to work to create a system where there is a clear measurement of returns and how it has enhanced the life of customers.

THE MARKETING VALUE

Sustainability has great amount of marketing value too. When you talk about sustainable practises and you address the entire value chain the stories that come out of it those in itself become a great touch point for any kind of business to showcase what the true capabilities are. We cannot ignore the fact that businesses need to advertise and as they go about doing that, we need to be aware of the fact that the stories of sustainability and its practises are not just working in a vacuum but they're actually getting people interested in supporting the ecosystem that brings about a positive change.

A COLLECTIVE

As we move towards the future it is now very clear that sustainability needs to become a collective project where businesses and their large resources can definitely help in greater adoption and bringing about the change faster along with its loyal customer base than letting individuals figure it out on their own.