Month: March 2023

Meet Laverne Hampton, supply planner team lead, Containerboard. Laverne, like all women at IP, provides valuable insight and a unique perspective to our organization. 

About International Paper

International Paper (NYSE: IP) is a global producer of planet-friendly packaging, pulp and other fiber-based products, and one of North America’s largest recyclers. Headquartered in Memphis, Tenn., we employ approximately 39,000 colleagues globally who are committed to creating what’s next. We serve customers worldwide, with manufacturing operations in North America, Latin America, North Africa and Europe. Net sales for 2022 were $21.2 billion. Additional information can be found by visiting InternationalPaper.com.

 

Originally published by Ericsson

72% of early tech adopters believe that a shopping app that suggests alternative digital items will replace physical shopping needs in the 2030s.While it may take time for people to change their habits and become content with choosing digital over physical, it will ultimately help reduce environmental impact and conserve resources for future generations.

One day at the dinner table my 13-year-old daughter excitedly told us that she found a way to ‘wear’ many hats without buying them. As a parent I was immediately curious, so she showed me how.

She took me to a place where she could try on many different hat designs, snap a picture and then share with her friends. She and her friends would often meet here to talk about which hairstyle, makeup and dress color suited them best – and she had tens and hundreds of pictures as proof. She proudly told me that she didn’t have to buy them but was just happy to see how she looked in them. Apparently, this is something all her friends do these days! What a great idea! Enjoying the goods without purchasing or owning them!

But you won’t find this place in your local mall. To get here you’ll need three things: a smartphone, a connection and Snapchat. Because, as you might have already guessed, none of these hats, dresses, makeup, or accessories are real. They’re all virtual, and that got me to thinking: Is there a difference anymore?

Impact of dematerialization

Knowing how dire the situation is with climate change and global supply chain disruptions, there could be many upsides to replacing part of our physical consumption with digital alternatives in future.

In fact, many of today’s tech early adopters would agree. According to the recent 10 Hot Consumer Trends: Life in a Climate-Impacted Future report, as many as 72 percent of early adopters surveyed agree that a shopping app that suggests alternative digital items to replace physical shopping needs will be in use in the 2030s.

Does this have the potential to take off? I think so. Think about how we consume experiences today, for example, such as going to a movie theater, the gym or skiing. While this kind of consumption doesn’t involve physical goods, the amount of energy needed to get to the destination is becoming more costly given the energy crisis we are experiencing right now.

From my own personal experience, I haven’t been to a gym since the beginning of the pandemic. So how do I keep up with my exercise goal? I do it at home by following a workout video made by a trainer from far away. Is the experience great? No. Does it do the trick? Yes. Do I want to go back to the gym now that gyms are open? Absolutely not.

The truth is I have already found other things to do with the time saved from traveling to the gym. But do I long for a better experience? Definitely. Ideally, I’d like to be able feel the trainer closer to me, preferably right next to me, not only to instruct me but also cheer me along. I would also like to do it from the comfort of my home.

But will there be such solutions in future for people like to me use? Well, technically there already is. Nowadays it is possible to do virtual training sessions using a VR headset. This alternative gives a much more immersive experience than simply following a training video on a screen.

Above: Consumers say they want a new generation of ICT services and apps to help them adapt to tomorrow’s climate-related challenges. Explore them all in the latest Ericsson ConsumerLab report.

Adapting to a new reality

As a matter of fact, there is a VR headset at home right now on my desk. Why don’t I use it for my workout sessions? I’ve been pondering this a lot lately until my wise colleagues pointed out: I’m having a hard time changing my usual way of doing things! During the pandemic I was forced to change my routine, like many others, as there were simply fewer alternatives to choose between.

Today, without that external driving force, I’m reluctant to change my usual way of doing things. I find it inconvenient and time consuming to even turn on the VR headset and find the right app or even remember to charge it (even though I pretty much have to do the same with my computer or phone for the same training session).

For some reason I’m finding it difficult to move on from my computer or phone, even though I have a shiny new VR device at home. After some research, I found out that this is not unusual when it comes to consumers changing their habits or lifestyles.

We all know it takes a long time (even generations) and a lot of effort for people to change from one habit to another. Many people oftentimes hold on to their usual way of doing things until everybody around them has already changed, producing a self-inflicted ‘fear of missing out’ effect. In my case, I will probably try harder to make more use of the VR headset on my desk, as otherwise I will be left out of a lot of fun activities my colleagues do!

Consumption, be it physical goods or intangible experiences, gives us not only ownership but also the pleasure of shopping and consuming. The shopping process can be an experience in itself and can be therapeutic for some people, bringing pleasure and comfort. While I don’t believe everyone will enjoy the digital way of consuming in future, I do hope, over time, more of us learn to become more content with consuming digital goods and experiences, just like how much enjoyment my daughter and her friends get with digitally wearing different hats or outfits.

Only then can we know for sure we are leaving some resources for our future generations.

Learn more about climate-impacted consumer choices

Ericsson’s ConsumerLab studies the use and role of technology for consumers now and in the future. To do this, we interview more than 100 000 consumers each year, representing more than 1.1 billion voices. While personal finances, healthcare and safety have topped the global list of consumer worries for decades, climate change has now become one of the most reported concerns among consumers.

Explore the latest report in full here: 10 Hot Consumer Trends – Life in a Climate-Impacted Future

Explore more

Read the blog post: Why a dematerialized future is worth striving for

Read the blog post: Shopping for a dematerialized holiday with XR

Read the article: Digitalization enables enterprises to reach Net Zero

Written by Marie Cloherty for Business Leader, published on 16.01.23, original source: Can CSOs Solve the Climate Crisis?

In this guest article, Marie Cloherty, Executive Director of Sustainable Business at Acre, discusses what can be done following last year’s COP27 and the lack of action against the climate crisis.

Last year’s COP27 left many feeling flat. I was one of them. And let’s be honest – the conference fell short of any real commitments to decarbonise with the speed and urgency that is necessary. As global temperatures continue to rise, it’s clear that businesses will need to take the most action to solve the challenges we now face. 

So what can be done? Firstly, a clear and defined step change within a business is crucial. Unless we all treat the climate crisis as a priority, the world and its resources will fundamentally dissipate. Businesses cannot afford to behave as they always have, where they consistently put profit over purpose. 

To deliver real change, sustainability needs to be embedded into a businesses’ overall strategy. It is about evaluating and adjusting your entire ecosystem and transforming your business to deliver real shareholder value. 

Transformation is difficult, but it is possible. Would anyone have thought 30 years ago the preferred method of communication would be Whatsapp? History has shown that we can adapt, but the difference this time is that we don’t have 30 years to do so. There is a huge task ahead and we must activate everybody’s potential around us, now.

The rise, fall, and resurrection of the CSO

The CSO role began in the early noughties. These early architects of sustainable change within organisations started a movement which ultimately generated significant change. Messages were well-communicated and left workforces inspired to integrate sustainability across functions. 

During this period, however, carbon offsetting grew in popularity and a large swathe of greenwashing took place – the option of buying credits meant businesses thought about offsetting rather than reducing their carbon emissions. It gave companies the option of ticking a box without re-evaluating and decarbonising their operations, which significantly damaged the credibility of both sustainability and the CSO role. As a result, the CSO role gradually disappeared. 

It was not until the global pandemic of March 2020 that sustainability entered board-level discussions with aplomb. Suddenly, key workers were spotlighted; health and safety practitioners found themselves moving from the shop floor to the boardroom as they were drafted to help their organisations protect the workforce both physically, from the dangers of a widespread virus, but also mentally, from the shock of losing jobs and working from home. 

Enter the new iteration of the CSO; with a need to inherit the skills to be able to focus on narrative, ensuring sustainability is owned by every player, they also need a strong technical team around them to support with complex issues such as the removal of Scope 3 emissions from the supply chain, to tackling a complex and highly-nuanced, but much-needed focus on the equity, diversity, and inclusion agenda. With this much responsibility, it cannot all fall to One Figurehead taking the stage.

Collaboration and communication

The lion’s share of the CSO’s role is to remain convinced of the end goals & then to collaborate, lobby, influence, activate, and inspire, like never before. ESG is not the exclusive responsibility of the CSO or their team – everyone must take responsibility. 

CSOs, for their part, need to be committed and determined, believing that capital can and will be deployed towards these issues and mobilising all people around them to enact major transformational change. 

First, CSOs need to interact with the board to align ESG with the strategic direction of the organisation. With a seat at the top table, they are uniquely positioned to exert influence, demonstrating the business case for greater emphasis on sustainable finance and offering robust strategic advice to the CEO. The board can, for their part, reinforce their organisation’s commitment to ESG by building ESG goals into executive remuneration and incentive plans. 

Finally, CSOs need to work closely with governance, compliance, and risk teams. Doing so is important to ensuring that these initiatives can be sponsored and be implemented. Many CSOs are now looking to create strong governance frameworks around what they are embedding, and they need support from people in the organisation who will be more traditional and conservative in their view, which is as important as injecting maverick innovation, if we are to achieve real balance and success in turbulent economic times.

The war on talent: partnering for success

The skillset required of CSOs is unique and hard to come by in one individual when businesses face a war on ESG talent. The best way forward is to hire a blend of individuals who can embed sustainability, each touching different aspects of the ever-growing ESG agenda. 

A powerful dynamic is coming to the fore as companies pair commercial business leaders with individuals with technical sustainable expertise. Within this partnership, the CSO will raise the profile of sustainability at an executive level. They will have a track record of bringing sustainability to bear upon a business’s main strategy, aligning priorities and effectively embedding sustainability policies. 

This individual has a strong commercial understanding – they know how to navigate complex organisations, their own sectors and can corral the troops. Their credible number two is often a technical expert who understands how to achieve technical sustainability goals. 

Ultimately, the CSO leads a group of individuals who can effectively communicate, mobilise, and solve the technical challenges, shaping the workforce to share the load and come along on the journey.

The road ahead

As companies either begin or continue to transform their businesses and cultures, the CSO and their team have a critical role to play, not least in ensuring the vision embeds across all functions, from the board to the newest starter, but that economic factors do not cloud the major issues at hand. After all, sustainable businesses are proved to be more profitable and more future-proofed than any other type of business. 

We can no longer afford to simply talk the talk with effective marketing. Do not underestimate that your own staff and your future hires will be holding your organisation to account, like never before. Any hint of rhetoric will be rightly called out. It is time to rethink how we learn from previous mistakes and mobilise everyone within our business towards sustainable business for future generations.

With 13 years’ commercial experience spanning business development and team leadership, Marie has placed multiple executive-level positions across multi-stakeholder initiatives, consultancies and industry & now oversees our Sustainability Team. From field to board room, she understands the crucial soft skills that enable purpose-driven professionals working to leverage the power of private finance to ultimately solve some of the world’s greatest modern challenges. Her areas of expertise span executive search, interim, advisory and leadership assessment across the broad sustainability agenda.

About Acre

At Acre, we work with the most aspirational businesses with potential to make real change; from those who are just starting out to those who are well on the journey to crafting a legacy.

Our 18 years’ experience in sustainability recruitment, combined with our extensive global network, enables us to provide talent solutions that are designed to deliver this change.

Through our unique behavioural assessment technology, we understand the types of people, skills and behaviours required to create impact. We can develop these qualities within your existing teams too.

We find talented people and develop their skills to ensure they make a true impact in ambitious, progressive organisations.

Acre. Making companies ready for tomorrow.