May 26, 2021 is an extraordinary date in the truest sense of the word. For the first time, a court has ordered a multinational company to reduce its CO2 emissions by 45% compared to 2019 by the end of 2030 (in accordance with the goals of the Paris Agreement on Climate): the Dutch court in The Hague for the oil giant Shell.
Whatever one may think of the real effectiveness of this type of approach in the fight against global warming, it remains a very revealing one. The growing importance of the environmental issue in companies' strategies.
Sustainable transformation at the heart of strategies in industry
Industrial groups under pressure
Undoubtedly, more and more members of society are concerned about the CSR approach of large industries:
- the NGOs, now experts and... radical,
- the States, which set ambitious goals (Energy-climate law in France) and are themselves under pressure from the citizens: The Case of the Century and the Citizens' Convention for the Climate in France, the climate marches around the world…
- their own employees (and even their future collaborators): groups of young engineers and students like « For an Ecological Awakening » that are created to express their desire to produce while taking into account the environmental impact,
- And of course the consumers, In Europe, where 90% of people expect brands to commit to (for example through more responsible manufacturing methods) and help them consume better, according to this study: Oney and OpinionWay study on rational consumption (February 2020).
CSR issues now integrated (?)
According to a study published in April 2021 by the British investment firm Arabesque (which reviewed nearly 700 large publicly traded groups in 14 countries including the United States and China), less than one in four large companies in the world At that time, they had taken measures to limit global warming to 1.5 °C by 2050. However, the European companies surveyed were among the «good performers,» notably in France, where a third (only…) of the CAC 40 companies declared having taken measures to limit global warming.
If this figure is revealing of the path that remains to be traveled, the majority of industrial groups now seem to have fully integrated the CSR issues in their long-term strategic transformation plans:
- Automotive groups that place alternative mobility at the heart of their development ambitions (example) Mobilize from Renault),
- Energy experts who design solutions to encourage their customers to consume less...,
- Brewers are transforming their production equipment to drastically reduce their water consumption...
In France, Certain industrial groups such as Alstom, Michelin, Saint-Gobain and Vinci have already been recognized for their environmental excellence. according to the 2021 ranking of the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDPFrance is in fact the leader among European countries with 22 companies rated «A» among the 272 distinguished companies worldwide (out of nearly 12,000 companies evaluated).
Beyond these few examples, Such disruptive transformations can only be achieved through a profound adaptation of the company. that we propose you to approach it according to the following 4 axes.
4 pillars for successful disruptive transformations in industry
1. Align all the teams to give meaning back
To move from vision to very concrete achievements such as those above, the challenge for the leaders of these large industrial groups is to strongly involve all teams in an environmental ambition which, at first glance, may appear vague and uncertain. Therefore, they must address several issues:
- aligning all employees on a common environmental ambition within the framework of the company’s CSR approach,
- clearly identify the 3 or 4 major environmental projects prioritized for the company in connection with this ambition,
- to pilot and monitor the progress of these projects at a more dynamic pace (what results in 3 months rather than in 2 years) and on a regular basis (See, in this regard, the method of the Objectives & Key Results)
2. Putting technology at the service of the environmental challenge
The fourth industrial revolution linked to digitalization (after mechanization, mass production, and automation) or Industry 4.0 It has already profoundly transformed the industry: the dematerialization of management, mass customization of production, predictive maintenance for better productivity, etc. However, the positive impact of technological developments on the carbon footprint of industry is taking time to be felt: in 2019, 22% of CO2 emissions in Europe came from the industrial sector, according to the European Environment Agency.
However, the awareness is real. That same year, according to a Insee study on investments in the environment in industry, 88% of French industrial establishments with 500 or more employees have invested in pollution control measures aimed at limiting greenhouse gases (GHGs), mainly generated by CO2 emissions, and reducing the harmful effects of their activities on air quality. The energy, agro-food, chemical and metallurgical sectors alone have concentrated 71% of these investments.
Now the question is mainly how to intelligently exploit new technologies (3D printing, IoT, AI, cobots, Virtual Reality, Big Data...) in service of the sustainable transformation of industry. In short, finding the balance between the gains they can generate and the positive environmental impact of their use for more sustainable production and consumption: limiting waste, saving energy, eco-design…
3. Changing work modes for sustainable industrial innovation
The main key to moving towards sustainable and resilient industrial models is certainly this one.
Beyond the acquired technologies, it is the industrialists who innovate while serving the environmental cause that are the ones who radically transform their organization with agile and collaborative practices.
Innovation most often arises from collective intelligence: fostering interactions between teams to generate energy savings, collectively implementing more environmentally friendly production processes, creating more resilient products and services, and integrating logics. UX to help the consumer become a responsible citizen…
Certainly, the strict application of agile methods is not always appropriate for large industrial projects, especially in terms of development costs. But the integration of The agile mindset (4 values and 12 principles), certain forms of agile organization (Squad, Tribe…) and the application of certain agile practices (Retrospective, Feedback…) often allow for significant improvements in the performance of teams. facilitate the creation of value focused on the ecological issue and accelerate its delivery.
4. Placing HR at the heart of the sustainable transformation of industry
As mentioned above, sustainable transformation of the industry is far from limited to technology or involving only a few engineers. This profound evolution requires both the involvement of all employees and the «stressing» of all departments within an industrial group.
It therefore falls to the Human Resources Department to be the conductor of the change in order to:
- Guarantee the alignment and commitment of the entire organization on the same ambition of transformation, from the leadership structures to the operators in the factory,
- Impulser The necessary transformation of management culture in order to enable the implementation of agile and collaborative working methods at the enterprise level,
- Develop and/or acquire the skills necessary to evolve towards a business model durable and environmentally friendly,
- Optimizing The employee experience to retain and attract the talents useful for the sustainable future of the industry.
To go further, discover our webinar « Talent management: revealing and engaging the leaders of tomorrow » with the testimonies of ENGIE and Plastic Omnium
10 years to transform and enable everyone to create a sustainable and desirable future
All experts agree that the course of the decade that is about to begin is crucial for the future of our human societies. The industrial world has a major role to play in reducing our impact on the decline of biodiversity and global warming.
But moving from a pro-environmental discourse to a genuine vision of the future, immediately followed by profound and concrete transformation, is at the very least complex. New methods of strategic management such as the OKR method, Agile practices and organizations, the Collaborative work modes… can facilitate this process.
That being said, in a world that is still too often divided into sectors, Sustainable transformation requires a real change of mindset« mindset » and corporate culture. That is why it is important to be advised and accompanied in this process.
Renault, Safran, Keolis, TechnipFMC… Download our examples of successful transformations in the industry!
Client case: supporting managers and the Comex in the transformation of the industry
Discover how talenco transformed the practices of managers and the Comex at Flexi France (TechnipFMC).
Client case: developing management practices that are collaborative and agile in service of engagement
Discover how talenco has trained Safran teams in new management practices that are collaborative and agile.
Case study: Adapting management and team-building practices to hybrid work
Discover how talenco supported managers at Keolis in a hybrid work environment.
