DIvIDEnD - Stephen M. Ross School of Business - University of ...

Ross Professors help Shape Report on
carbon, Midwest Economic Revival
Professors Tom Lyon and Andy Hoffman were
advisers on a new national report examining how
the midwest could add jobs and revenue from
changes in u.s. climate and energy policy.
American Innovation: Manufacturing Low
Carbon Technologies in the Midwest was issued
in January by the climate group, a nonprofit
organization established to find ways to cut global
emissions. the report estimates that climate and
energy policies could create up to 100,000 new
jobs in the midwest and generate additional
market revenues of up to $12 billion, boosting state and local tax revenues
by more than $800 million by 2015. these gains were estimated from policy-
assisted growth in the wind turbine component, hybrid powertrain, and
advanced battery manufacturing sectors.
the report considers the impact of three climate and energy policies:
a $17-per-ton price on carbon in 2015, resulting from a cap on emissions;
a national renewable electricity standard of 20 percent by 2020; and a green
economic stimulus package. it compares job and revenue growth in michigan,
illinois, indiana, ohio, and wisconsin with and without these policies.
michigan could see more than 32,000 new jobs created, more than $4 billion
in market revenue, and about $244 million in state and local tax revenue
through 2015, the report states.
lyon and hoffman assisted in designing the assumptions and criteria
to undertake the economic analysis, and reviewed the report’s content.
Deloitte financial advisory services completed the economic analysis
and background research.
lyon is director of the erb institute for global sustainable
enterprise, a partnership between Ross and u-m’s school of natural
Resources and environment. he is an authority on corporate environmentalism
and the interplay between corporate strategy and public
policy. he is the Dow Professor of sustainable science, technology,
and commerce; a professor of business economics; and a professor of
natural resources. hoffman is associate director of the erb institute
and an expert on managerial implications of environmental protection
and social sustainability for industry. he is the holcim (u.s.) Professor
of sustainable enterprise, an associate professor of management and
organizations, and a professor of natural resources. —Kevin Merrill
Energy club Seeks to cut Through carbon haze
James Rogers, chairman and CEO of Duke Energy, set the tone at the Ross Energy Club’s second
annual Carbon Symposium in September when he called for the U.S. government to make a move
on carbon regulations. “I want action now,” he said. Rogers and the North Carolina-based electric
power company have been at the forefront in the utility industry of finding workable alternatives to
burning fossil fuel and supporting some sort of cap-and-trade legislation.
Erb Graduates Publish Book
on Hybrid organizations
An increasing number of today’s business
students want to work for companies that
are “doing good and doing well,” according
to the authors of Hybrid Organizations: New
Business Models for Environmental Leadership
(Greenleaf, 2009).
“Right now there’s another wave of the green
revolution,” says Emily Reyna, MBA/MS ’09,
one of five Erb Institute graduates who
contributed to the book. “People are realizing
we have limited resources and want to work
for companies that are cognizant of that.”
While the concept of hybrid organizations is
not new, there is a lack of research and literature
on how these companies work, say the authors.
They were eager to shed light on organizations
they define as market-oriented, mission-
centered, and focused on the common good.
“They can’t just be a company with one
‘green’ product. They have to be more holistic,”
says Daniel Wang, MBA/MS ’08.
Wang, Reyna, and co-authors Brewster
Boyd, MBA/MS ’09, nina Henning, MBA/
MS ’09, and Matthew Welch, MBA/MS ’08,
worked with faculty adviser Andy Hoffman,
associate director of the Erb Institute and the
Holcim (U.S.) Professor of Sustainable Enterprise,
to collect data from 47 companies that
fit their description of a hybrid organization.
They chose only for-profit companies and
put no restriction on the size or age of
the firm. They reviewed business models,
strategies, finances, organizational structures,
processes, metrics, and innovations
of hybrid organizations. Then the team
selected five companies for in-depth
case studies: Sun Ovens International, Guayakí,
Eden Foods Inc., Maggie’s Functional Organics,
and PAX Scientific Inc.
The authors conclude that hybrids offer an
effective organizational model for contributing
to global environmental issues. They argue,
“While there may be limits to the speed of
growth or scaling for these organizations, they
may be more effective and self-sustaining than
traditional organizations in meeting humanity’s
common challenges.” —Leah Sipher-Mann
spring 2010 DIvIDEnD 13