Aligning Corporate Growth with Environmental Sustainability

In the first CFO survey of its kind, “The Role of Finance in Environmental Sustainability Efforts” has found that “CFOs and other senior finance executives overwhelmingly report that environmental sustainability is an increasingly important issue for their companies, and that a range of significant financial benefits are achievable for companies that can implement strategies that truly reduce their impact on the environment.”Top sustainability objectives include regulatory compliance, improving energy efficiency / reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and reducing the environmental impact of operations. The survey also found that the greatest barrier to implementation lay in “measuring the effects of sustainability on shareholder value and financial performance.” According to Lauralee Martin, CFO at Jones Land LaSalle, this potential for sustainable growth remains largely untapped:

“Most CFOs believe sustainability can lead to cost savings, increased revenues, greater customer retention and a competitive advantage, so clearly this is an opportunity that can not be ignored. The question each of us should ask is whether we are taking an aggressive enough position, given the rapidly approaching tipping point of this issue.”

For the entire article, go here or here.