Sustainable business practices

I have a colleague who cares passionately about the environment. She worries about global warming, supports policy to reduce carbon emissions, and is militant about keeping the heat down and maintaining the proper tire pressure in her car. Yet her car is an SUV that gets shameful (her words) gas mileage. She lives in a […]

Managers should make environmental investments for the same reason they make other investments: because they expect them to deliver positive returns or to reduce risks.

There are plenty of reasons to be disappointed with the Copenhagen climate talks that start today: the meeting will not result in a binding agreement, the timeframe for such an agreement is potentially years away, and of course, neither the US nor China has committed to binding reductions. While all this is certainly disappointing, the […]

Two trends will force business into action.

The great volcanic eruption in Iceland has stranded seven million travelers and is costing airlines at least $1 billion in lost revenue this week. This...

If you are the leader of a large organization (or only of yourself) who cares about improving the world, here’s a question you should consider: How will you participate in the global solution networks that are increasingly managing to address the world’s problems? A global solution network is a group of independent parties that have […]

How social norms can help people become more sustainable.

The recent removal of Danone's CEO and chairman, Emmanuel Faber, has been seen by many as a clash between activist investors and stakeholder capitalism....

Smaller businesses will play a key role in halving global emissions by 2030. But they often lack the resources to succeed on their own.

Pepsi recently demonstrated its commitment to reducing its environmental impacts up and down the value chain with two rapid-fire announcements about new...

Climate change is a pressing concern for Bill Gates, who has just published a new book on the subject. He spoke with HBR's editor-in-chief about the need...

(Editor's note: This post is part of a six-week blog series on how leadership might look in the future. The conversations generated by these posts will...

According to conversations with 25 directors.

If your firm is debating whether to hire a chief sustainability officer (CSO), you may be like fictional electronic components manufacturer Narinex. After...

Business leaders worked together with city government officials.

Editor’s note: This post is one in an occasional series on Vijay Govindarajan’s and Christian Sarkar’s idea to create a scalable housing solution for the world’s poor. Each post will examine the challenge from a different perspective, including design, technology, urban planning and more. Today, Bob Freling examines the energy challenge. The $300 House: The […]

Shifting market dynamics, such as rising oil prices, new energy and environmental technologies, greening consumer attitudes and even the likely capping of greenhouse gases, provide the opportunity for companies to rethink their existing business models. Today, companies are emerging that directly challenge current ways of doing business. In doing so, they are not only redefining […]

It's always easier to picture how a manufacturing company can go green - just cut back on energy, waste, and material to reduce air and water pollution,...

Deep, lasting culture change requires an integrated approach that remodels a company’s social systems. The leadership team of Home Depot employed a remarkable set of tools to do that.

Is your company ready for the impact on its supply chains?