Can sustainability be a competitive advantage?

Hello!

As we all prepare for a scorching hot couple of days in the UK, grab a cold drink, find a shady spot and enjoy this month's edition of Better Business Bites.

This month I ask whether sustainability can be a competitive advantage (yes!) and look at a business which is proving it can be, as well as some recommended summer reading.

As always, please use the comments below to share what questions you have and what you're finding most challenging. Then I can make the content of future emails, social media posts and blogs more valuable to you.

Can sustainability be a competitive advantage?

Sustainability has often been seen as a nice-to-have. An investment that can be deferred until next year if times are tough and budgets get slashed. But the world is changing, buffeted by shocks from all angles. We’re on the edge of a radical transformation. Right now, sustainability can be a competitive advantage. In future, it will be the status quo.

Here are five reasons why sustainability can be a competitive advantage:

1. It can cushion the business from cost increases - imagine if your business was fully powered by its own solar or wind energy and you were able to go 'off grid'?
2. Supply chain resilience - how might extreme weather events and changing climate affect your supply chain?
3. Attracting, retaining and motivating great people - there's lots of evidence that people want to work for businesses that are acting on sustainability (not just talking about it).
4. Changing procurement policies - if your clients and customers aren't already asking you about your sustainability plans, they will be within the next 5-10 years. 
5. New ways to deliver value - how can you use your existing skills and capabilities to deliver new types of value to your customers / clients?

To read more, including advice on how to make it your competitive advantage, check out my latest blog.

Recommended reading

If you're looking for something to add to your list of holiday reads, then make it From What Is to What If by Rob Hopkins. 

I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve recommended this book! That’s the sign of a good read.

To motivate action and engage with change, we have to be inspired to move towards something. Something that looks and feels so much better than today. Rob Hopkins helps us do that by sharing stories of initiatives that are happening right now. In communities where they’re challenging the status quo, imagining a different way of doing things and trying out new ideas to see what happens.

Here's a link to my full book review.

Inspiration corner

One of the businesses I refer to constantly is Elvis & Kresse. It's such a brilliant example of a business that has positive impact baked into what it does and how it does it, running right through it like a stick of rock! It's been their core purpose ever since they were set up.

Elvis & Kresse make luxury accessories and household products from materials that would otherwise have ended up in landfill. I have one of their handbags and it's one of my favourite things I own! It's amazing quality, made from woven leather offcuts, lined with reclaimed parachute silk and trimmed with decommissioned firehose.

Since they were founded, Elvis & Kresse has diverted over 300 tonnes from landfill and donated £300k to charity - they donate 50% (!) of their profits. What's more, they operate with ultra-transparency and pay everyone a good wage. What's not to love?!

One of the best ways to find out more is to listen to Ravi Rai's brilliant podcast interview with their founder, Kresse Wesling, which you can access here (it's episode 3) or by searching for 'Good Business Talking' wherever you access your podcasts.

Free international leadership programme

Earlier this year I completed a 5 month fully-funded programme run by Common Purpose. And now you can apply to be part of the next cohort!

Who's it for?

Anyone, of any age, in any role, anywhere in the world. What matters is that you're passionate about tackling environmental challenges and have an idea for how we do that.

What did I find most valuable?

1. Exploring my leadership style and learning how I can play a leadership role when operating outside my area of experience or in a different culture. This helped me articulate the role I play and feel much more confident in this.

2. Being reminded of the power of questions and leading through questions.

3. Connecting with people around the world who share similar values and purpose to me. And also being challenged by their different perspectives.

What's the commitment?

It's very manageable. Probably about 2-4 hours per week. Though one of my learnings was that I would have got more out of it if I'd then carved out time additional to this to reflect properly on what I was learning and ask "so what?"

And, as I said, it's very generously funded by a philanthropist so it doesn't cos you anything.

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To find out more and apply (by 10th August) follow this link. And feel free to get in touch with me if you have any questions.

And finally... 

I strongly encourage you to watch Stephen Fry’s typically eloquent video in support of Extinction Rebellion UK

As he says, sometimes we need to “disrupt a destructive journey”. And what could make us more aware of the need to do that than today's scorching hot weather in the UK and the wildfires raging in South West Europe?Have a great day, stay cool and thank you for reading!