250
within a company; that the sequence of skill-building provided does speed learning
from experiences of companies with more mature programs; and, that the balanced
focus on both near-term performance objectives and long-term organizational
development needs leads to sustained high performance in both fi nancial and environmental dimensions.
There is a rich literature on capabilities required for sustainable business management (van Kleef and Roome 2007 ; Wiek et al. 2011 ; Silvius and Schipper 2014 ;
Wesselink et al. 2014 ). While there is yet no broad consensus on a defi nitive list,
there are common themes – system thinking, interpersonal skills, anticipatory or
foresighted thinking, embracing diversity and strategic management. Additional
insights can be gathered from research on organizational health and fi nancial performance (De Smet et al. 2007 ). Concepts such as direction, leadership, accountability,
innovation, coordination and external orientation were found to contribute to fi nancial success. Although the UNEP/SETAC Life Cycle Initiative pilots were not
intended to evaluate the structure of the LCM CMM, some useful insights can be
elicited from the various projects. The basic structure of leadership, life cycle practices and enabling infrastructure appears adequate to capture the various elements
identifi ed in the literature. The process model is summarized in Table 17.3 .
Observations from the pilots, however, identifi ed some gaps in the supporting training materials.
Leadership and vision are obvious success factors. The case studies presented,
however, are a biased sample with all showing projects motivated by strong vision
and leadership. Thus only one example will be presented to illustrate the signifi -
cance of vision on results. The Colcafé project was viewed not as a waste minimization project, although it was selected to help meet a company zero waste goal. The
‘waste’ silver skins were re-imagined as a co-product valued at the price of the
purchased coffee beans. Thus, the alternative of using the silver skins as an additive
to improve the digestion of poultry manure was implemented. The silver skins,
when initially viewed as a waste, were collected in bulky bags expensive to ship and
diffi cult to handle by workers at the digester. The company evaluated options to
compact the material for easier transport and redesigned the packaging for easier
handling while feeding material into the digester. The redesign of the packaging
leveraged their expertise in product logistics. Strong management support is a critical success factor for the implementation of these kinds of complex collaborations.
The same can be said for AQUA + TECH where zero-discharge, as a policy, forced
the fi rm to look at new products it could make from its “waste” streams.
One of the key training gaps identifi ed in the pilot studies was a need for more
guidance in tailoring the model to specifi c contexts, such as industry sector or geographic area. The model was developed primarily for an individual coach or change
agent attempting to champion implementation of LCM at a manufacturing facility.
Thus, application to service industries was particularly challenging. There was also
a need for additional guidance on interpreting the business signifi cance of environmental impacts. These gaps can be related to capabilities associated with strategic
management. Companies achieve a competitive advantage by assembling a unique,
valuable and diffi cult to imitate collection of resources and capabilities (Helfat and
T.E. Swarr et al.
within a company; that the sequence of skill-building provided does speed learning
from experiences of companies with more mature programs; and, that the balanced
focus on both near-term performance objectives and long-term organizational
development needs leads to sustained high performance in both fi nancial and environmental dimensions.
There is a rich literature on capabilities required for sustainable business management (van Kleef and Roome 2007 ; Wiek et al. 2011 ; Silvius and Schipper 2014 ;
Wesselink et al. 2014 ). While there is yet no broad consensus on a defi nitive list,
there are common themes – system thinking, interpersonal skills, anticipatory or
foresighted thinking, embracing diversity and strategic management. Additional
insights can be gathered from research on organizational health and fi nancial performance (De Smet et al. 2007 ). Concepts such as direction, leadership, accountability,
innovation, coordination and external orientation were found to contribute to fi nancial success. Although the UNEP/SETAC Life Cycle Initiative pilots were not
intended to evaluate the structure of the LCM CMM, some useful insights can be
elicited from the various projects. The basic structure of leadership, life cycle practices and enabling infrastructure appears adequate to capture the various elements
identifi ed in the literature. The process model is summarized in Table 17.3 .
Observations from the pilots, however, identifi ed some gaps in the supporting training materials.
Leadership and vision are obvious success factors. The case studies presented,
however, are a biased sample with all showing projects motivated by strong vision
and leadership. Thus only one example will be presented to illustrate the signifi -
cance of vision on results. The Colcafé project was viewed not as a waste minimization project, although it was selected to help meet a company zero waste goal. The
‘waste’ silver skins were re-imagined as a co-product valued at the price of the
purchased coffee beans. Thus, the alternative of using the silver skins as an additive
to improve the digestion of poultry manure was implemented. The silver skins,
when initially viewed as a waste, were collected in bulky bags expensive to ship and
diffi cult to handle by workers at the digester. The company evaluated options to
compact the material for easier transport and redesigned the packaging for easier
handling while feeding material into the digester. The redesign of the packaging
leveraged their expertise in product logistics. Strong management support is a critical success factor for the implementation of these kinds of complex collaborations.
The same can be said for AQUA + TECH where zero-discharge, as a policy, forced
the fi rm to look at new products it could make from its “waste” streams.
One of the key training gaps identifi ed in the pilot studies was a need for more
guidance in tailoring the model to specifi c contexts, such as industry sector or geographic area. The model was developed primarily for an individual coach or change
agent attempting to champion implementation of LCM at a manufacturing facility.
Thus, application to service industries was particularly challenging. There was also
a need for additional guidance on interpreting the business signifi cance of environmental impacts. These gaps can be related to capabilities associated with strategic
management. Companies achieve a competitive advantage by assembling a unique,
valuable and diffi cult to imitate collection of resources and capabilities (Helfat and
T.E. Swarr et al.