Catalyze October

PRIORITIZING
SUSTAINABILITY
GRACE CLACK:
DIRECTOR OF
PRODUCT
MARKETING
MICROSOFT
Ashley Haynes Gaspar:
Sure. From where I sit, not only is prioritizing sustainability the right thing for the
environment and the planet, but organizations are feeling the pressure of change
from every direction. There has been a shift from, I think, what we traditionally
thought about as shareholder capitalism to this notion of stakeholder capitalism.
You know, the decades preceding this was all about shareholder return. Most, if
not all decisions were anchored on this as the key tenant. And I think we've seen a
shift to stakeholder capitalism, a model where the shareholder still absolutely
matters, but so do customers and employees. So does the community that the
company operates in. And what I'd love to do is just kind of break that down really
quickly, Grace. Investors are putting financial pressure on organizations that have
not made carbon pledges. They are voting with their values. 73% say that efforts to
improve the environment and society contribute to their investment decisions. I
think that this is a shift from where we've been
customers.
Customers are voting with their values. With 77% of consumers motivated to
purchase from companies committed to making the world a better place. It's why
I love Bombas socks. It's why I pay more for them. When we think about regulators,
regulators raise public reporting expectations and tighten controls and employees.
Employees want to work for an organization that is making a difference in creating
a sustainable future. In fact, the data says that 93% of employees believe
companies have to lead with purpose. And I think this shift from stakeholder to
shareholder is just really an existential priority for us.
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