Sustainability and Competitive Advantage

This book aims to link a company’s investments in sustainability to enhanced competitive advantage. It allows the reader a rare glimpse inside different companies (both large and small-sized companies and from across public and private sectors) that have made deep commitments to integrating sustainable practices. While each case is a unique situation, the common thread that runs through them is the non-linear trajectory of these sustainability programmes. The reader can draw powerful insights from the progress of these 13 cross-sectoral companies as they journey from vision to execution and achievement of measurable outcome or even course correction. While the motivations for each corporation to initiate sustainability programmes may have been different, the tangible benefits of the investments provide empirical evidence of the strong relationship to value creation.

The situational study from each of the selected organizations emerged after in-depth conversations with multiple stakeholders including CEOs, C-suite, and senior functional heads as well as sustainability professionals in HQ roles. Even though the title of this book rightly hints at its practice orientation, it also integrates concepts and theories for a better understanding of the adopted practices, approaches, systems and decisions.

The pivotal role of leadership not just in setting sustainability goals but also in supporting the trans-formative journey at crucial milestones and embedding the right culture is revealed. This book will be useful to students, researchers and teachers of strategy, sustainability and environmental studies, ESG, environmental science, sociology and public administration. We hope this book motivates and galvanises even more momentum in research and practice so that we can preserve our planet for the next generations.