Business and circular economy: an in-depth look
Commitment to sustainable development is not only a moral responsibility, but also a fundamental strategy for the long-term success of companies. In the era of the climate crisis and the growing expectations of customers and investors, companies must take concrete measures to reduce their impact on the environment. The transition to a circular economy is a priority, which offers numerous benefits for companies, including cost reduction, improved reputation and accelerated innovation.
Did you know that...
… most companies want to implement sustainability initiatives or have already started doing so? This statement was shared by 71.1 to 84.9% of executives at medium-sized and large companies in 6 different European countries.
The increased public awareness of lifestyles and consumption patterns is leading businesses, institutions and public authorities to recognize the need for an inevitable change in strategy and direction.
ONLY 4% OF COMPANIES WILL NOT INVEST IN SUSTAINABILITY
Over 4 out of 10 companies (41.8% of managers involved in the Interzero research) will invest up to 150 thousand euros in sustainability in the next 3 years (23.9% up to 50 thousand and 17.9% up to 150 thousand). More than half (53.9%) will spend more than 150 thousand euros and over 2 in 10 (24%) more than 500 thousand euros.
What drives companies to implement sustainable solutions?
The opportunity to increase process efficiency is the main driver that pushes companies to implement sustainable initiatives. Communication and reputation reasons towards stakeholders follow. Taking these motivations into account, the next part of the analysis focused on a group of companies selected based on the type of sustainable initiatives undertaken. To this end, an in-depth analysis was conducted, which highlighted how the most common practice is the verification of the environmental compliance of their operations (72% of companies).
How to minimize the negative impact on the environment?
Reducing the environmental impact of a company’s activities is a valuable competitive advantage. Among the actions taken to achieve this goal, survey participants most frequently reported: reducing emissions, optimizing waste management, eliminating plastic, eco-designing packaging, and developing an effective ESG strategy.
Interzero Research: State of the Art, Needs and Trends of the Circular Economy
Interzero supports companies in the transition to sustainable business models through comprehensive consulting and innovative environmental solutions. Our White Paper presents the results of a research aimed at defining sustainability trends, market expectations and related business decisions of medium and large companies in Europe. More than 250 C-level managers were involved in 6 countries: Italy, Austria, Poland, Slovenia, Croatia and Serbia.
The aim of the study is to:
- understand and analyze market trends in the field of circular economy and sustainable development;
- examine any obstacles to the application of best practices in the individual countries being researched;
- examine the main sustainability needs of medium and large enterprises in the research countries and analyse their timeliness in adopting sustainable business models;
- create a basis for the state of development of the ecological transition in business models at European level by summarizing the data obtained from all the countries analyzed.
Fill out the form to read the report results:
Have questions about the report? Need help defining a sustainability strategy for your company?
Write to us at the email address below!
consulting@interzero.it
