CEO commitment to sustainability thwarted by economic climate

Despite a top down approach to sustainability, more than two thirds of chief executives (67%) believe that business is not doing enough to address global sustainability challenges, according to a survey by the United Nations Global Compact and Accenture.

The report is the largest study of top executives ever conducted on sustainability and details the views of 1,000 chief executives.

Entitled Architects of a Better World, the study demonstrates broadening awareness on the part of global business of the opportunities presented by sustainability. Fully 78% of surveyed ceos see sustainability as a route to growth and innovation, and 79% believe that it will lead to competitive advantage in their industry. However, ceos see the economic climate and a range of competing priorities creating obstacles to embedding sustainability at scale within their companies.

“With thousands of companies, from market leaders to small enterprises, committed to responsible business practices, we can see that there is enormous momentum. Now, we need policymakers, investors and consumers to send the right signals to spur the next level of corporate sustainability action, innovation and collaboration,” commented Georg Kell, executive director of the UN Global Compact.

See the full story in the October issue of Ethical Performance.
 

Picture credit: © Andrew Kazmierski | Dreamstime Stock Photos