At a recent Corporate Member event at Sustainable Brands (SB) Paris, I got to connect with a number of peers around how businesses can advance their sustainability agenda. The event was attended by a range of industry players including some of the best minds in sustainability. I want to share three key learnings that came out of the event that I feel are important for businesses, such as ours, striving to advance their sustainability agenda.
Creating a culture of change which embraces the uncomfortable
When thinking about sustainability it is tempting to focus on scientific solutions and technological advancements, but I believe that meaningful change will only come if organisations change their culture. Mastering this change is complex and it requires leadership in lots of places; leadership which creates the necessary cultural change that not only permits but encourages business teams to step into and embrace uncomfortable challenges, regardless of how tough they are.
Focus on the areas where you can have most impact
A lot of the conversation at the SB event was about how best to structure an organisation’s sustainability agenda when there is no ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach. I believe that it is important for businesses to identify the areas where they can have most impact and where there is the most potential to make significant progress. For PepsiCo, this is packaging, water replenishment and sustainable agriculture.
For example, through our partnership with Loop, consumers will be able to enjoy two of their favourite breakfast products, Tropicana Orange Juice and Quaker Chocolate Cruesli, in a new reusable packaging format. This new reusable packaging format combines attractive design with the durability needed for reuse.
We have also been working to create a portfolio of beverages that go ‘beyond the bottle’ to enable us to offer consumers a range of great-tasting beverages without using single-use plastic bottles. Our beyond the bottle offerings range from SodaStream, a sparkling water maker, to Aquafina water stations which enable consumers on college campuses to refill personal containers.
Collaboration is key to success
Participating in the SB Corporate Member meeting reminded me that the opportunity to discuss sustainability challenges with a broad range of industry colleagues and professionals is invaluable. We need to work pre-competitively with our peers, and with NGOs and government, to recognise common challenges and share solutions. Loop itself is a great example of a collaborative model. In my view, collaboration and knowledge sharing across different organisations will help ensure we are taking steps in the right direction.
I would like to thank SB for inviting me to participate in such a worthwhile and interesting event. It confirmed to me that PepsiCo is focusing on the right priorities in terms of driving impact but also enabling the culture that will drive more rapid change. But there is more to be done, and I look forward to continued exploration and discussion in the future.
Chris Daly
VP Supply Chain
Strategy, Transformation and Sustainability
PepsiCo Europe Sub-Saharan Africa
This article originally appeared on LinkedIn. Click here to view.
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Published May 21, 2019 11am EDT / 8am PDT / 4pm BST / 5pm CEST