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environmental impact. A large part of training the designers is about managing
(and living with) uncertainties.
Intrapreneurship has some aspects that are quite contradictory to LCA. Perhaps
the most important one being that you are not completely sure about the outcomes
before you do something. You take a calculated risk. That requires courage and
stamina as you do not know what the outcome will be. It also requires the courage
to acknowledge that we are imperfect. In businesses, people are used to making
decisions with an uncertain outcome, at least to some extent.
To understand how people use the results from an LCA it is important to look at
yourself from their perspective. That can change a lot. Just as turning the camera on
planet earth – as the astronauts from the Apollo space mission did – had a tremendous impact on how we look at what we do to (the environment on) the earth. A very
simple way of doing that is meeting with the users from your LCA study without a
specifi c purpose, drink a cup of coffee and listen to what they are working on, what
drives them, what successes they have achieved, and what challenges they face.
That will give you great insight in what opportunities LCA can help with. And seizing opportunities is what makes a change.
Knowing what your (internal) clients need – or call it your audience – will also
help to present the results in a way that is appealing to them and is relevant for their
goals and needs. If you learn how to tell your story, you can convince, motivate and
stimulate people to do something with the results from your LCA study. And of
course, facts play an important role in that story.
4.2 Long-Term Management Commitment to Sustainability
Many big companies have a long term commitment to sustainability. Research
(MIT, UNEP and BCG 2015) shows that 42 % of the boards are committed to sustainability and that 31 % of the companies have operational KPIs related to sustainability. Still, support from senior management really is a prerequisite for having an
impact; some experienced corporate LCA practitioners have been able to connect to
the long-term goals of the company. They learned that management likes facts; facts
can help them to make the right, informed decisions about sustainability. And facts
are something LCA can deliver, sometimes with some uncertainty, which is something management has learnt to deal with.
Thus, LCA and LCM can play an important role on the road to achieving sustainability goals. We all know the examples of companies that use LCA or LCM in their
sustainability strategy. At the same time there are still many companies that do not
build their sustainability strategy on sound and robust fi gures. They follow what
others are saying and doing or one of the latest trends with less consistent and transparent methods to measure. So, there is an opportunity for all LCA practitioners
because they know the facts and can show something else than what you would
expect or what everyone else is doing.
M. Goedkoop et al.
environmental impact. A large part of training the designers is about managing
(and living with) uncertainties.
Intrapreneurship has some aspects that are quite contradictory to LCA. Perhaps
the most important one being that you are not completely sure about the outcomes
before you do something. You take a calculated risk. That requires courage and
stamina as you do not know what the outcome will be. It also requires the courage
to acknowledge that we are imperfect. In businesses, people are used to making
decisions with an uncertain outcome, at least to some extent.
To understand how people use the results from an LCA it is important to look at
yourself from their perspective. That can change a lot. Just as turning the camera on
planet earth – as the astronauts from the Apollo space mission did – had a tremendous impact on how we look at what we do to (the environment on) the earth. A very
simple way of doing that is meeting with the users from your LCA study without a
specifi c purpose, drink a cup of coffee and listen to what they are working on, what
drives them, what successes they have achieved, and what challenges they face.
That will give you great insight in what opportunities LCA can help with. And seizing opportunities is what makes a change.
Knowing what your (internal) clients need – or call it your audience – will also
help to present the results in a way that is appealing to them and is relevant for their
goals and needs. If you learn how to tell your story, you can convince, motivate and
stimulate people to do something with the results from your LCA study. And of
course, facts play an important role in that story.
4.2 Long-Term Management Commitment to Sustainability
Many big companies have a long term commitment to sustainability. Research
(MIT, UNEP and BCG 2015) shows that 42 % of the boards are committed to sustainability and that 31 % of the companies have operational KPIs related to sustainability. Still, support from senior management really is a prerequisite for having an
impact; some experienced corporate LCA practitioners have been able to connect to
the long-term goals of the company. They learned that management likes facts; facts
can help them to make the right, informed decisions about sustainability. And facts
are something LCA can deliver, sometimes with some uncertainty, which is something management has learnt to deal with.
Thus, LCA and LCM can play an important role on the road to achieving sustainability goals. We all know the examples of companies that use LCA or LCM in their
sustainability strategy. At the same time there are still many companies that do not
build their sustainability strategy on sound and robust fi gures. They follow what
others are saying and doing or one of the latest trends with less consistent and transparent methods to measure. So, there is an opportunity for all LCA practitioners
because they know the facts and can show something else than what you would
expect or what everyone else is doing.
M. Goedkoop et al.