Sustainability
transformation

Sustainability is an issue that individuals, companies and institutions must face up to today, but also in the coming years. This is because scarce resources, new political regulations, changing customer needs, employees with a different understanding of values and green financial products are driving change. With our "SustainABLE" approach and our Change Management expertise, we provide professional support to organizations on their path to greater sustainability.

Contents

Discuss your project with us:

01 What is sustainability?

The term sustainability originally comes from the field of forestry. In the 18th century, the sustainable use of a forest was used to describe the amount of wood removed that would allow the forest to regenerate within a certain period of time. Today, the concept of sustainability is omnipresent and describes the responsible use of all resources so that they are also available for future generations.

For this century, sustainability has been the starting point for the most challenging transformation of the economy. The scope and urgency of this transformation is also reflected in numerous political initiatives: the Kyoto Protocol, the Millennium Development Goals, the Sustainability Development Goals and the EU Climate Law 2021. This is not just about mitigating climate change, but also about the socially, ecologically and economically sustainable use of all resources. This is because our way of doing business also enables future generations to have access to these resources.

02 The pressure on companies to transform is increasing

In addition to the already noticeable effects of climate change, the IPCC Report 2022 predicts a pessimistic future: scientists expect an average global temperature rise of 2.1°C-3.5°C by 2100. This means that the speed of our transformation to reduce greenhouse gases must change drastically, otherwise we will have to reckon with high follow-up costs. The political framework conditions are therefore being continuously tightened. And society's demands on companies in terms of sustainability are also rising sharply. For many companies, this means a phase of upheaval, as existing business models are being critically scrutinized.

The increasing pressure to innovate harbors great disruptive potential for all industries. Against this backdrop, companies need to be innovative and adaptable. However, when successful companies change their structures that have grown over decades, professional support is required. In addition to the organizational structure, it is also important to adapt the corporate culture and anchor the topic of sustainability. Successful transformation can only be achieved if the managers convincingly represent the sustainability vision.

We meet our customers where they are and look at
what their individual
objectives are for the
sustainable transformation
of the company.

03 Challenges of a transformation towards more sustainability

When it comes to sustainability projects, companies quickly realize that they are reaching their limits with the usual tools and methods. This is because customer requirements, legal regulations and employee values change very quickly. As a result, companies need an organization that can react much more quickly and flexibly than it did in the past. The resulting changes often affect not only the company itself, but all collaborations along the entire supply chain.

There is no question that the decision to adopt a sustainability strategy often initially excites management, employees and the public. However, the actual definition and implementation of the necessary structures, processes and culture brings with it various challenges.

Reason for the change influences the attitude of the organization

To begin with, it is necessary to examine what the actual reason for the sustainability transformation is. If the pressure to change is exclusively external, e.g. due to regulatory requirements (CSRD, ESG), this often only leads to the implementation of minimal solutions. Accordingly, companies should also manage expectations and communicate the desired results openly.

Resilience as a means of dealing with uncertainty

Sustainability projects are also often characterized by the fact that the target image and the requirements for a solution are not yet known. This leads to uncertainties, whether due to the lack of an anchor point or new requirements arising in the course of the project. In this context, resilience is important - in the sense of dealing with challenges and positive resilience. A mentality in the company for dealing openly with changes, helpful prioritization principles and stringent leadership are necessary here.

Awareness of the economic viability of sustainability

Another challenge in sustainability transformations is the preconception that sustainability is not economically viable. As a result, sustainability issues are often given low priority when investments are made. To change this, it is important to clarify the understanding and significance of sustainability in the organization. Based on this, a correspondingly higher prioritization can then be made. Measuring progress and sustainability targets as well as embedding the topic in regular business reporting also supports the integration of the sustainability strategy.

Iterative approach to stay on the ball

Once you are in the process of transformation, the biggest challenge is to "stay on the ball". Changes towards more sustainability take time. In addition, the goal can change very quickly due to changing conditions. In order not to lose stringency here - also from a management perspective - we recommend communicating and rewarding interim successes time and again.

We support our
customers in defining appropriate
sustainability targets and establishing their measurement.

04 Sustainability transformation with our SustainABLE approach

So how should the transformation in sustainability projects be handled? A holistic approach is needed that looks at the organization as a whole and creates consistency in the organization between vision, leadership, culture and processes. Sustainability or corporate social responsibility departments must work closely with specialist departments, but also with organizational development, cultural initiatives and top management. Different perspectives and expertise make it possible to develop creative solutions to complex problems.

Through our SustainABLE approach (Figure 1), we identify the right places for change and support them professionally with our Change Management expertise. This offers our clients a wide range of benefits in their sustainability transformation:

Organization-wide transparency and awareness of sustainability ambitions and the associated levers.
The organization changes sustainably and becomes more resilient overall in dealing with change and operating in complex environments.
Combined change and organizational development expertise enable a cooperative design process in which employees and those affected are actively supported.

Together with our clients, we go through a structured process consisting of a cyclical approach and our sustainABLE focus areas. This helps to break down the complexity of the sustainability transformation into manageable components and successfully take it one step further:

Clarification of objectives. We meet our clients where they are and look at what their individual objectives are for the sustainable transformation of the company. It is important for us to create a common picture for all those involved. Understanding the sustainability strategy and its place in the organization is an important anchor point for all further measures. Change Management measures. In addition, the success of the upcoming change should be made measurable. To this end, we support our clients in defining appropriate sustainability goals and establishing their measurement.

Analysis. Based on the agreed objectives, the aim is to understand where the organization currently stands in relation to its sustainability goals and where adjustments need to be made in order to achieve the set goals and the necessary level of maturity. The sustainABLE focus areas (Anchor, Building Blocks, Leadership, Employees) provide helpful support in taking a holistic view of the organization.

Implementation concept. Based on the results of the analysis, we define the implementation approach together with our customers. In doing so, we involve all relevant parties in order to agree on the appropriate procedure. The result is a prioritized backlog of change measures for the sustainability project, which can then be implemented in a focused and iterative manner.

Implementation of measures. The change backlog is implemented iteratively and in line with the agreed procedure together with those involved and affected. It is important to proceed in small steps, to dare to try new things and to evaluate the impact of the individual measures. The change backlog will be a living instrument that maintains flexibility in order to be able to react appropriately to given changes.

Measuring success / ambition level. Sustainability projects are influenced by changing framework conditions. Both the project goal and the ambition level of a sustainable organization can change / increase (Figure 2). We have taken this into account in our approach, in which an interim measurement takes place at times defined with the client. Based on this evaluation of the impact achieved by the sustainability project, the next steps are reviewed and adjusted if necessary. It also provides a basis after the project to determine whether further sustainability initiatives should be launched.

In addition to this process model, our sustainABLE approach includes corresponding focus areas. These allow us to take a holistic view of the organization and design a suitable change approach. The following questions relating to our sustainABLE focus areas are an excerpt and provide an insight into what we are talking about:

Anchor - the extent to which sustainability ambitions are anchored in the corporate strategy:
- Where is the topic of sustainability embedded in the organization?
- Who in the organization is sponsoring the topic?
- How well is the sustainability strategy known in the organization?
- How does the sustainability strategy fit in with the corporate vision and the current business model?
Building Blocks - What does the company's system with its structures and processes look like and what is needed for the sustainability strategy to be put into practice?
- What governance structures are there and should there be?
- In which committees and areas of responsibility are sustainability issues discussed and decided?
- How is innovation driven forward in the company?
- Which processes are affected by the sustainability strategy?
Leadership - Which management image and principles are practiced
- What proportion of executives are driving the issue of sustainability?
- What goals motivate managers?
- Which management behavior is important for the sustainability strategy?

To what extent is ambidextrous leadership widespread in the company?
Employees - How do employees live and shape the sustainability culture
- How do employees work together?
- What (new) skills are required?
- What criteria are used to recruit, assess or promote employees?
- How resilient are the teams and those affected?
- How are employees informed and involved in the sustainability transformation?

All these questions are an excerpt from our assessment of the need for change in sustainability projects. Each organization has an individual situation that we address.

Feel free to contact us and we will introduce you to our sustainABLE approach.

05 Sustainability Use Cases

In our use cases you will find specific use cases from companies and examples of our concrete approach.
Click on the respective case to find out more:

We look forward to accompanying you on your path to sustainability.