Corporate Climate Change Attitudes Confound Consumers
Despite the clamor from consumers and even corporate marketing staffs themselves around eco-issues, a recent study ranked "climate change" at the bottom of priority lists for Britain's largest companies.
More than half of the 73 companies surveyed by YouGov for KPMG said there were more urgent issues, such as brand awareness, marketing strategies and overall corporate social responsibility. Just 14 percent of them had a clear strategy for tackling climate change.
Only half the top executives at the companies surveyed, according to the Financial Times, claimed to fully understand the implications of climate change and the business consequences. Two-thirds believed their company gave the issue the attention it deserved.
Another survey of 19 U.K. fund managers found that although some had launched green funds for consumers with special interests in issues such as climate change, others saw industry's efforts to demonstrate environmental credentials as an attempt by companies to get "the green fraternity off their backs." Headland, a communications consultancy, found most pension fund managers remained reluctant to incorporate climate change into their mainstream investment decisions, given their primary fiduciary duty to maximize shareholder returns.
During the very same week the surveys arrived, however, the London Guardian produced diametrically opposite conclusions based on a conference whose subject was one that has "raced up the corporate agenda - climate change."
At the event, organized by a newsletter publisher, Ethical Corporation, the corporate world was out in full force, including many with titles alone indicating their eco-commitment. BT (mobile service provider) had its "head of climate change" present; Barclays Bank, its "head of environmental management", and the Association of British Insurers, its "climate change leader."
Charles Allison, partner with conference sponsor ERM (an environmental consultancy), said that while insurers and energy companies have shown interest in climate change for some time, consumer-based companies have become much move involved over the last six to nine months.
"Different sectors have different drivers for taking this issue seriously. For instance, for companies like BT it's all about their reputation with customers. The media are giving increasing emphasis to climate change and now the public wants the supermarkets and others it buys goods and services from to offer solutions that help them lead a better life," he told the Guardian.
The article noted that retailers are "some of the biggest new green evangelists" as barely a week goes by without some new "green" initiative.
The increasing interest by corporations comes as consumers' consciousness of climate change has grown dramatically. Marks & Spencer claims the proportion of its customers saying responsibility matters has gone up from 50 percent to 97 percent in the past four years while a new study by advertising agency MPG reveals that almost three in four British families would boycott firms that do not take real steps to cut their environmental impact.
Skeptics wonder if many of these eco-friendly initiatives are only superficial publicity stunts to appease consumers rather than real solutions for climate change.
But founder and director of charity Forum for the Future, Jonathan Porritt, believes that as long as companies genuinely change, their reasons don't really matter.
Discussion Questions: Do you think companies have learned lessons and are recognizing their obligation to help deal with climate change? Or are they using climate change initiatives to wave a flag of apparent acknowledgement of consumer concerns? Does it really matter as long as they do the right thing?