Green Apple: facing increased scrutiny

You might be like me in believing that Apple's new Macbook is the greenest laptop out there. This is what the commercial implies anyway. Or, you might even think Apple is the greenest company ever, according to a recent survey. Not exactly, competition and environmentalist say. They perceive Apple's Macbook ad as a misleading marketing ploy and argue that Apple's environmental record lags behind the industry's green leaders such as Dell and Hewlett Packard.

So what exactly is wrong with saying you are the greenest of them all? Presumably, Apple's ad aimed to increase its sales among eco-conscious consumers and restore its slumping share price. Why not use a little green marketing to achieve this objective? The problem is that once you claim to be the greenest you'd better be ready to prove that in face of increasing scrutiny. For instace, as a result of the ad and the scrutiny that followed, we now know that Asustek laptops are, in fact, the greenest of all. And that Apple is behind its competition in reducing greenhouse gas emissions or using clean energy.

Overall, more green competition is good, particularly for us, consumers. I wish many other companies and industries would reach a similar level of concern for environmental impact.

Better vs. bigger: a sustainability lesson from private companies

I found the book Small Giants by Bo Burglingham insightful and inspiring. It is about successful companies that chose to remain privately owned and faithful to their mission and values. If you have a hard time identifying such a company - they are rarely in the news - the book familizarizes you with 10 such small American giants, including two in the New York area, CitiStorage Inc. in Brooklyn and Union Square Hospitality Group in Manhattan.

What makes this companies great? Burlingham identifies several factors, which, in combination, generate a certain distinctive mojo. Despite great pressure to grow fast (brought about by success), the founders/owners opted for gradual growth, thus retaining control, freedom and creativity in all actions. Each of these companies is deeply rooted in and shaped by its community. A small giant cultivates intimate relationships with customers and suppliers, and builds exceptionally humane workplaces. And all these companies are led by leaders deeply passionate about the business.

How socially responsible are these companies? Because of their organic ties to their communities, they are creative and extremely effective in their CSR approaches. Because they are free of external stakeholder pressure to maximize returns, they don't exploit the marketing potential of their social investments and don't talk much about them. They do it because 'it feels right and brings tremendous satisfaction'. Even Milton Friedman rests his case regarding social involvement of privately owned companies. Since so many of us are seriously questioning the sustainability of the mainstream model of doing business, maybe we could look for inspiration in the small giant model.

Do you know any "small giant" in your area? Please share you experience and what you think makes it different from others!

Happy Sustainable New Year!

Despite the abundancy of gloomy predictions for CSR for 2009, I believe that CSR and sustainability will continue to evolve and gather more supporters. There are at least 3 reasons to be optimistic about the future of CSR:

1. A new era, Sustainability 2.0, is fast on its way;

2. The number of companies willing to initiate sustainability programs is increasing as is the demand for Chief Sustainability Officers (CFO);

3. There is someone out there willing to give you $5k for your outstanding idea of how to improve our world.

Happy Holidays to you and your families!

About irresponsible investing and bad management theories

While on Christmas break, I read some good pieces on topics that have significant bearing on CSR and its future, which I'd like to share with you.

About irresponsible investing practiced by foundations

1. Shaky Foundation and Bernard Madoff on Marc Gunther's blog.

2. Wall Street fraud leaves charities reeling in International Herald Tribune.

About the huge role business schools have played in shaping today's poor business thinking and management practices

1. Bad management theories are destroying good management practices by Sumantra Ghoshal.

2. In theory there is no difference between theory and practice by Mallen Baker.

How businesses can make us better consumers

World Business Council for Sustainable Development released an interesting report on how businesses can help us consume sustainably. Wait, aren't we already great, green, demanding consumers? Do we need help from businesses? Oh, yes! And not only from companies, but also from governments and civil society!

One of the main findings of the report is that although willing to live sustainably more than ever before, we usually fall short to do so mostly because we are: 1)ignorant, 2) selfish, 3) cheap and 4) subject to the "I will if you will" mentality. This sounds like a big problem. And it is, particularly as you learn about global consumption trends and their impacts. But this situation also presents an opportunity for sustainability-aspiring businesses.

Forward-thinking businesses could and should help us and future generations by: 1) producing high-quality & affordable sustainable products & services; 2) making them easily available and 3) leveraging our increasing reliance in purchasing decisions on our social networks and online communities. Sounds like a win-win situation to me. What do you think?

CSR career advice from Michael Hastings

Did you get inspired by the achievements of the ethical leaders of 2008? Do you want to work for a responsible company that is walking the talk? Do you want to get the opportunity to make your contribution to improving your communities?

Then you will probably appreciate this video piece from Michael Hastings, global head of Citizenship and Diversity at KPMG, a global network of audit firms, operating in over 140 countries with over 100,000 professional staff. It is also one of the world's best companies to work for. As Hastings puts it well,

"CSR is the opportunity for every individual working for an organization to be a positive contributor to the needs of the community around them, the needs of community in the nation, the needs of the community in the wider world."

So here we are. CSR is not anymore only about companies making the right choices. CSR is increasingly becoming also about individuals choosing the companies that are committed to make the right choices.

Congratulations to ethical leaders of 2008

The Ethical Corporation published the 10 top ethical leaders of 2008 and includes the following personalities and their great achievements:

1. Barack Obama, US President-elect, for making the perfect start to addressing the world’s biggest challenges in 2009

2. Bill Gates, founder of Microsoft and philanthropist, for outlining the opportunity side of responsible business with his vision for creative capitalism.

3. Richard Lambert, director-general, Confederation of British Industry, for proactive business leadership in setting the UK climate change agenda.

4. Donald MacDonald, chairman, UN Principles for Responsible Investment, for leading the UNPRI through the most significant year of its history.

5. Jessica Sansom, sustainability manager, innocent drinks, for turning the innocent founders’ commitment to sustainability into tangible results in the supply chain.

6. Howard Pearce, head of environmental finance and pension fund management, UK Environment Agency, for proving that asset owners can call their fund managers to account on ethics – provided they are committed enough.

7. Chris Wille, chief of sustainable agriculture, Rainforest Alliance, for helping to take ethical food and drink into the mainstream market.

8. Patrick Alley, director, Global Witness, for well-chosen campaigns on corporate complicity in human rights abuses in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

9. John Ruggie, UN special representative for business and human rights, for getting the business and human rights agenda back on track.

10. James Hansen, climatologist and head of Nasa’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies, for outspoken and informed criticism of government and business inaction on climate change.

So, if you are wondering what you can do to make this world a better place, there is a great deal to be learned from and inspired by these distinguished personalities.