In a world facing profound environmental, social and economic challenges, sustainability means creating business models that are resilient, adaptable and capable of enduring over the long haul. But how?
More than 40 faculty from across IMD, including IMD President David Bach, seek to answer that question in a new book, Leading the Sustainable Business Transformation: A Playbook by IMD, edited by Julia Binder, Professor of Sustainable Innovation and Business Transformation, and Knut Haanaes, Professor of Strategy and Lundin Sustainability Chair.
How business leaders can achieve sustainability
The multi-authored, multi-disciplinary Playbook addresses the critical question of how business leaders can achieve sustainability in their organizations – a notoriously hard nut to crack even for those who are determined to play their part in creating a sustainable future and fully committed to action.
The Playbook is action-orientated and full of practical guidance. It also contains many new and surprising insights.
“In today’s world, leadership isn’t just about the right strategy, it’s about courage, vision, and turning complexity into opportunity. Sustainability demands that we rethink how we lead, transforming not just decisions, but entire ways of doing business,” said Julia Binder, Director of IMD’s Center for Sustainable and Inclusive Business and Program Director of the Creating Value in the Circular Economy program.
“I am very inspired by the deep insights and the engagement from our IMD colleagues demonstrated in the book,” said Knut Haanaes, Program Director of the Leading Sustainable Business Transformation (LSBT) program and Co-Director of Driving Sustainability from the Boardroom (DSB).
The book covers common barriers to change; minimizing risks; managing performance; and measuring impact. It makes the case for rethinking sustainability as an opportunity to be embraced, rather than a challenge.
“Businesses today stand at a crossroads: they must not only adapt to rising societal and environmental expectations but lead the way in reshaping our economies for a more sustainable future. The stakes have never been higher.” IMD President David Bach
The book showcases the opportunities that sustainability offers and how to seize them, including reducing climate-related financial risks and when and how to integrate sustainability into branding and marketing. It covers strategy, innovation, operations, and leadership, providing a holistic, actionable resource.
A journey of the head, heart and hand
At its core, the book frames sustainability as a journey of the head, heart, and hand: strategies that win (head), leaders who inspire (heart), and actions that deliver (hand). Consider, for example:
Richard Baldwin, Professor of International Politics, and Simon Evenett, Professor of Geopolitics and Strategy, who shed light on the complex nexus between geopolitics and sustainability (the “head”).
As an actionable tool (the “hand”), Hischam El-Agamy, Executive Director at IMD for Africa, the Middle East and South-Central Asia, considers sustainability through the lens of scenario planning and decision making in the context of uncertainty. And Carlos Cordon, Professor of Strategy and Supply Chain Management, dives into sustainability end to end, now that businesses must be accountable for “Scope three” emissions, i.e. the energy and other resources that their suppliers use, as well as their own.
For the “heart”, Heather Cairns-Lee, Professor of Leadership, suggests to “talk the walk” of sustainable transformations, offering insights into how leaders need to align language and communication with meaningful actions that inspire trust and mobilize stakeholder action.
Solution-oriented approaches
The good news is that business is inherently pragmatic and solution-oriented, as David Bach and Michel Demaré, IMD Chairman of the Supervisory and Foundation Boards and IMD Chair of the Board at AstraZeneca Plc, point out in their foreword: “With the right tools, leadership mindset, and supportive policy environment, we can bring economic growth into balance with societal and environmental needs.”
Julia Binder is co-author of The Circular Business Revolution. A Thinkers50 “Top 30 Thinkers to Watch” in 2023, she has spent more than a decade devoted to sustainability research and teaching, actively supporting business leaders in driving meaningful change to address global challenges.
Knut Haanaes is the driving force behind the creation of the Business Schools for Climate Leadership (BS4CL) alliance of eight leading European business schools. He is also deeply involved in IMD’s strategic partnership with the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD), which aims to equip business leaders with the skills to accelerate the pace of sustainable business transformation.
Discover more, see the full list of faculty contributors and pre-order your copy here: Leading the Sustainable Business Transformation.
