Operationalizing a corporate sustainability transformation in a fast-moving-consumer goods company

Abstract

Recent research shows the need to address sustainability from a problem-solving perspective. Taking the case of an international company, which is advanced in that matter, the purpose of this article is to document the key success factors to operationalize a sustainability transformation, as well as a step-by-step process for its deployment. Adopting a qualitative approach, the methodology relies on in-depth interviews with semi-structured questions, collecting the return of experience of 32 employees. The findings highlight three challenges: the implementation of sustainability indicators, organizational silos, and the shift towards a sustainable business model. As a result, it was possible to identify these key success factors: systematize the culture of measuring, introduce a transversal eco-governance, and conceptualize the transformation at scale with a progressive deployment.