Greetings from the Annual ISSP Conference

A dispatch from SSC consultant Alexandra Kueller

Today is the first day of the 2014 ISSP Conference, and I’m here in Denver excited for the conference to get started! ISSP, or the International Society of Sustainability Professionals, annually holds a conference to allow sustainability professionals from all around the world to come together to discuss, network, and learn from one another.

The next two days will be filled a variety of speakers covering a wide range of topics relating to sustainability. As much as I would like to attend each and every breakout session, I just don’t think that is possible. Instead, I’ve compiled a list of some of the sessions I am looking forward to:

• Joel Makower’s keynote address on the state of green business
• The Responsible Revolution: The Business Case for Corporate Responsibility & Sustainability presented by Jeffrey Hollender
• Building Resiliency in Supply Chain Communities: A New Hub for Thought Leadership, Investment and Action presented by Sarah Beaubien, Jennifer Gallegos, and Mary Beth Cote Jenssen
• Energy Trends, Policy, and Embedding Initiatives: Sustainability Practitioners Going Beyond plenary session
• Influences and Trends in Sustainability Reporting and Assurance presented by Chris Hagler
• A View from the C Suite presented by Jane Okun Bomba
• The Future of Sustainable Innovation presented by Tim Swales

Overall, I’m eager to see (and hear) how the sustainability industry has changed in the past year and what’s to come in the future!

If you are also attending the ISSP Conference, feel free to let me know – I would love to grab coffee with you!

Sustainability Software: ISO, CDP, GRI.... Making Sense of the Reporting Standards

This article was written as an expansion of our white paper “Choosing Sustainability Management Software for your Business” published in July 2011.  Enjoy!

By now, you may have noticed that there’s a veritable “alphabet soup” of reporting formats being delivered in the various software systems that you may be researching.  So what types of reports does your business need to generate?  Here’s a brief description of the major report “standards” – and just because the reporting body says they are a standard, doesn’t mean that they are the right one for your business.  The listing is alphabetical – we aren’t playing favorites here…

CDP

The Carbon Disclosure Project (www.cdproject.net) currently (as of June 2011) claims a participating population of 3,000 organizations in 60 countries worldwide.  Their goal is to collect and harmonize greenhouse gas emissions data from these groups to facilitate establishment of reduction targets, business decision-making, and investment direction.  Walmart has also asked its suppliers to report using this standard.

This might be right for you if… You are looking for a widely accepted and recognized reporting format that will align with your customers’ or suppliers’ needs, or if you sell (or want to sell) your products at Walmart.

GRI 

The Global Reporting Initiative (www.globalreporting.org) has produced a leading reporting framework for companies to disclose their sustainability performance; approximately 1,500 companies used this framework in 2009 and the number was expected to increase significantly in 2010.

This might be right for you if… You are looking for a widely accepted and recognized reporting format that will align with your customers’ or suppliers’ needs

ISO14000 and ISO26000 

The International Organization for Standards is a globally recognized body that bridges both the public and private sectors, producing business standards for more than 160 countries, ISO14000 covers Environmental Management standards and ISO26000 covers Social Responsibility standards.  

This might be right for you if… You currently implement or adhere to other ISO operational standards at your business such as ISO9000 for Quality Management.

ULE880 

UL Environment (a subsidiary of Underwriters Laboratory) has launched ULE880, a standard covering Sustainability for Manufacturing Organizations; ULE’s goal is to help companies gain clarity and understanding of what makes a product sustainable (and therefore helps them figure out if their products are sustainable or not).  This standard is similar to what UL has accomplished in consumer electronics safety and other similar industries. 

This might be right for you if… You are a manufacturer and produce other products that currently undergo UL testing and certification, or would like your product to undergo ULE certification and testing.

UNGC 

The United Nations Global Compact (http://www.unglobalcompact.org/) is built around the UN’s ten universally accepted principles for human rights, the environment, labor and anti-corruption.  

This might be right for you if… You are looking for a broad global standard covering overall Corporate Social Responsibility and/or have a global presence and are seeking a common standard for your worldwide operations.

Walmart Sustainability Index 

In 2009, Walmart launched the Walmart Sustainability Index (http://walmartstores.com/Sustainability/9292.aspx), built around a brief survey targeted at their 100,000 global suppliers.  After assessing their suppliers, Walmart intends to build a life cycle analysis database managed by a consortium of universities, suppliers, retailers, NGO’s etc.  The final goal is the development of a simple label for consumers, to help the make more environmentally friendly purchasing decisions.

This might be right for you if… You sell (or want to sell) your products at Walmart

At the end of the day, you need to pick a package that is going to allow you to generate the report that your company needs.  You don’t HAVE to report to any of these standards in the U.S. (if you are in Europe or elsewhere, please check with your local regulations), and you may not have to publish a report at all.  However, since you identified a sound business reason to be reporting in the first place, let that input guide your choice of standards. 

Now that you’ve read this article, tell us what you think!  And be sure to check out the full white paper.

The Evolution of the Chief Sustainability Officer

By: Alexandra Kueller

In 2011, the Weinreb Group released CSO Back Story, which highlighted Chief Sustainability Officers (CSO) at the time and provided an analysis on the position and the evolution behind the title. Three years later, the Weinreb Group published a follow-up to the initial report, now examining the shifts and growth of the position over the last few years.

During their analysis of the CSO position, the Weinreb Group found some interesting statistics. Over the past three years, the number of CSOs in the US are up from 29 to 36, and 42% of CSOs are women (the Weinreb Group analyzed only US companies that are publicly traded and the official title of the position is “Chief Sustainability Officer” for this report). Right now, seven companies are on their second CSO, compared to 1 in 2011, and the number of CSO appointments is growing each year.

But throughout their analysis, the Weinreb Group noticed five distinctive shifts in CSO roles and they are as follows:

Collective Benefit

CSOs in many businesses across the country are now using sustainability to drive business. While many companies are still implementing recycling programs and reducing energy consumption, they are now showing the benefits of sustainability on an organizational level and a stakeholder level. Many CSOs see this as not only good for the company on a corporate level, but they realize how much the customer benefits from sustainability as well.

Innovation

Sustainability initiatives within the company are no longer enough for a CSO. Many CSOs are seeing an expansion of their role to innovation across the company by bringing corporate social responsibility (CSR) to procurement, design, and even marketing. As sustainable products become more important to the company and the customer, calls for innovation are needed at the CSO level. Often, many people from a variety of departments – EH&S, product stewardship, etc. – are being brought into sustainability teams to help drive innovation.

Stakeholder Signaling

When appointing a CSO, it brings forward both internal and external signals to stakeholders. Externally, stakeholders see that you are a part of the C-Suite, indicating a position of importance since you are included at the core decision-making at the senior levels of the company. Internally, by appointing a CSO, it can indicate where the company stands on certain issues. When employees see that you are a CSO, it shows that the company is serious about CSR.

Access

Becoming a CSO grants you access that spans from employees to some of the highest levels of leadership within the company. By having access to all the different departments, executives, and policy makers, it allows for more influence. CSOs are now using their access to help develop and execute corporate sustainability measures within the company while showing the importance of CSR to top level executives.

A Team Sport

Almost any CSO will be quick to tell you that a company’s CSR success was not because of them, but rather the entire team. With having to implement change across an entire company, CSOs feel as if they help bridge the gaps between various departments, but it really is a team effort to implement a new system.

You don't have to be a CSO in order to be a sustainability leader. Check out our white paper on how to become a sustainability champion at any level.