Embedding sustainability in the organisation

Interviews with the heads of the business units captured existing activities. A market analysis added customer, supplier and wider market perspectives. According to the report, sustainability data from 71 suppliers and 30 customers was screened and evaluated. A subsequent gap analysis showed the differences between current activities and the departments’ requirements.

The sustainability positioning was tied to the company’s vision of the future, distinguishing mandatory topics from additional ambitions. The concept defined the tasks of the departments and the sustainability function, along with communication and decision-making routines for the work ahead.

The core team brought together the CEO, the sustainability function and the external consultants. It set the framework, made decisions on direction and resolved conflicting goals where necessary. A cross-departmental communication and advisory platform connected the people responsible in each department, creating a regular forum for topics, dependencies, work packages and pending decisions.

Clear levels of ambition in the target picture guided prioritisation. Key departmental measures were coordinated and monitored in focus projects defined each year. Operational responsibility lay with the employees carrying out the work; the platform and the sustainability function helped keep everything in sync.

The documented results include a digital knowledge platform on the intranet and a sustainability glossary specific to the organisation. In the core service areas, time slots were set aside in team meetings for regular exchange. This gave ongoing work on the topic a fixed place in day-to-day operations.

Which decisions need to be made centrally, which responsibilities belong in the departments, and how do new requirements feed back? The case helps clarify these questions when sustainability is to become a permanent part of how a company is run.

• A clearer positioning with guardrails and prioritised focus projects.
• Established governance through a core team and cross-departmental collaboration.
• Institutionalised knowledge sharing with an intranet platform, a glossary and fixed slots in team meetings.

The screening of 71 suppliers and 30 customers indicates the scope of the analysis at the time; it is not an impact metric. The case documents organisational work. It does not show that emissions were reduced or that the company is legally compliant today.