Running a Responsible Business: Sustainability as a shared culture
February 19, 2026
4 MIN READ
Often, when we talk about corporate sustainability, the conversation revolves around numbers, reporting, or regulations. But true sustainability is not just a metric or a checklist: it is a way of understanding business.
The Brundtland Report (1987) defined sustainable development as the ability to meet current needs without compromising future ones. However, in today’s corporate context, we must go a step further. As proposed by John Elkington with the concept of the Triple Bottom Line, business success is no longer measured solely by economic profit, but by the balance between People, Planet, and Profit.
This implies assuming that profitability must be based on responsibility and respect. It is essential to integrate sustainability into the company’s DNA: respect must be breathed into values, policies, and daily decisions. From the supply chain management to how we switch off equipment, everything has an impact.
A Tailor-Made Suit: The Communication Challenge
Sustainability is a totally cross-cutting concept; it is not the property of the “Sustainability” department, but everyone’s responsibility. However, to ensure the message truly sinks in, we cannot use a “one-size-fits-all” discourse.
To achieve real alignment, we must apply an “educational micromarketing” approach:
• Message Adaptation: An engineer needs technical data on efficiency, while a sales team needs value arguments for the client.
• Cultural Intelligence: As expert Erin Meyer explains in The Culture Map, geography significantly influences how we encourage people to change. What works in a European HQ might generate rejection in an Asian or Latin American branch if cultural nuances are ignored.
• Care for Language: We must be well-informed about who is in front of us to avoid friction. Adapting language is, in essence, an act of respect.
Building Bridges in a Fragmented World
In the era of hybrid work and multinationals, it is easy for silos to form. Office teams often live realities alien to plant or logistics teams. This is where sustainability training acts as a powerful social glue.
It is a way to build bridges:
• Between geographies: Uniting headquarters under a common purpose that transcends borders.
• Between roles: Connecting management, administration, and operations through shared goals.
Furthermore, educating on sustainability also means caring for people. Tools like the Climate Mental Health Wheel remind us that we must recognize the emotions linked to our impacts. Transforming anxiety or worry into constructive actions is key to having an empowered and resilient team.
Conclusion: Shared Responsibility
Sustainability is not a destination, but a way of traveling. By educating our teams, we are not just meeting quotas; we are activating a network of change agents and generating what Porter and Kramer define as Shared Value: generating business profit while solving social and environmental challenges.
Our goal is clear: for sustainability to stop being seen as a compliance task and become a responsibility assumed with pride, capable of maximizing our positive impact on the world.
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