How Innovation and Technology Will Fuel the Transition to Sustainable Enterprises by Eric Cuka

How Innovation & Technology Will Fuel the Transition to
Sustainable Enterprises

By Eric Cuka

6/30/2011

Saint Cloud State University - MBA 605

How Innovation & Technology Will Fuel the Transition to Sustainable Enterprises 2

Executive Summary

This report has been created to provide insight as to why businesses should adopt

sustainability practices into their core business strategies. Innovation and technology have not

only created increased pressure and transparency, they have also created enormous opportunity

for businesses in today's high-demand economy. There are incredible examples covered in the

included research which demonstrate how organizations have utilized eco-efficiencies to increase

margins while simultaneously benefiting both core and fringe stakeholders. The key concept of

this paper is to encourage companies to embrace sustainability into their corporate culture in

order to fuel innovation and create competitive advantages. Technology can be leveraged in a

wide array of possibilities to maximize operational efficiencies, increase margins, and impact

society at the same time. The research conducted to support the main argument of this report

includes readings from Saint Cloud State University's MBA 605 - Strategies for Sustainable

Development class, as well as multiple external readings from credible internet sources.

Anyone who is employed in a technology field will find this report especially interesting;

however, the content is relevant to multiple areas of business and business strategy. Whether

you are passionate about sustainability or not, the research in this paper will apply to you if you

are interested in maximizing operational efficiencies through innovation and technology. The

key eco-efficiencies covered include: reduced material and waste expenses, reduced energy

expenses, and reduced water expenses. As companies embrace technology, combined with a

sustainable strategy, additional innovations will be constructed as these companies strive towards

becoming sustainable. The bottom line is that technology and innovation will fuel the transition

to sustainable enterprises. Is your company going to be left behind?


Introduction

Today's rapidly changing business environment has increased innovation exponentially.

Most companies are forced to adapt by constantly researching and developing new, cutting-edge

products. Sustainable enterprises not only maximize efficiencies, but also create competitive

advantages in the marketplace. The key to sustainable enterprises relies on dialogue between

innovators and stakeholders. Through innovation and technology, companies have the ability to

maximize efficiencies, reduce waste, increase profits, and impact society in a positive manner.

Improved machinery, transportation, buildings, hardware, software, standardized reporting

metrics, and disruptive technologies will fuel the transition to sustainable enterprises.

According to Bloomberg Businessweek, companies have historically seen being socially

responsible as handing out checks to victims of natural disasters, being reactive to environmental

groups and NGOs, and greenwashing as a form of marketing to increase sales. "Now the

corporate sustainability movement has a simple premise: saving the planet can save big bucks.

Executives are trying to realize meaningful cost savings by coming up with innovative ways to

go easier on the environment," (Stanford, 2011). "How fully companies adopt sustainability

efforts in this decade could have a real impact on their shareholder value", says Daniel C. Esty,

an environmental policy professor at Yale Law School. The Yale professor thinks that

sustainability will become as transformative for business as the earlier quality and information

technology revolutions, once more executives understand the potential to increase operational

efficiencies, reduces costs, and increase margins through a sustainable enterprise (Stanford,

2011).

This paper will discuss how innovation has not only created more pressure for businesses

to become socially responsible, but how sustainability actually makes sense for companies to


incorporate into their core business strategy. There are several examples that describe how

companies have saved enormous amounts of money by rethinking shipping solutions, designs,

and other efficiency practices. Some of these companies achieve benefits by a sustainably

designed strategy, whereas others simply make an adjustment to save money without the primary

purpose being the environmental or societal stakeholders. The more that these examples are

examined, the more it makes sense for companies to pursue social responsibility and adopt

sustainable practices into core business strategies. When a company is actively looking for

sustainable improvements, more opportunities will be uncovered. Additionally, more

innovations and technological advancements will be created to fuel sustainable enterprises when

engineers are proactively designing with sustainable practices in mind.

Theoretical Framework & Empirical Findings

The first framework article, Building a New Institutional Infrastructure for Corporate

Responsibility, discusses the environment that businesses face in today's global economy.

According to the article, there has been a new surge of interest in corporate sustainability (CR)

since the mid 1990s, which has been fueled by the global communications capabilities of the

internet and other related technologies. Companies face new pressures to adopt greater corporate

responsibility. The article says that a key reason for closer attention to CR is that over half of

companies' assets today are intangible assets, such as good-will, reputation, and human capital.

All of these intangible assets rely on the quality of shareholder relationships which the company

has developed. The evolution in the concept of responsibility infrastructure focuses on the

integration of corporate responsibility with business models. Additionally, the integrated


strategy recognizes the impact of companies' business strategies and practices on societies,

stakeholders, and sustainability (Waddock, 2008).

According to Bob Willard's presentation from class, transitioning to a sustainable

enterprise starts with a company's beliefs and culture, then permeates into all aspects of the

business. Willard positions companies on a five-stage sustainability continuum model. Stage

one is known as the pre-compliance stage. Companies at level one cut corners to save costs and

do their best to not get caught for breaking laws. This stage is obviously a very risky position to

be in, and companies do not want to be in this stage. These organizations are illegal and

unsustainable. Stage two is the compliance stage. Companies at stage two do the minimum to

obey the law. While these firms are legal, they are still unsustainable. Stage three is known as

the beyond compliance stage. A company voluntarily moves into stage three when it realizes

that it can save money with proactive, operational eco-efficiencies. Stage four is the integrated

strategy phase. These firms focus on all stakeholders and inject sustainability practices into their

DNA. Stage five is known as passion and purpose. These organizations are unique because they

are created by value-driven founders. These companies do not go through the stage development

model since they are created at level five (Willard, 2011).

According to Willard, sustainability can be used as a tool to accomplish a company's

strategic vision. When integrated properly, sustainability offers seven tremendous benefit areas.

Three of the primary areas of benefit include: reduced material and waste expenses, reduced

energy expenses, and reduced water expenses. These three benefit areas, which this paper will

focus on, help improve the efficiency of links throughout an organization's operations. The other

four benefit areas are: increased revenue and market share, increased employee productivity,

reduced hiring and attrition expenses, and reduced interest on borrowed capital. Willard explains


that increased operational efficiency will improve revenues and market share (Appendix A)

therefore, those are the key areas that this paper will focus on. The core of this paper will cover

each of the three primary benefit areas: reduced material and waste expenses, reduced energy

expenses, and reduced water expenses, in relation to innovation and technology (Willard, 2011).

A key framework article which was covered in class that relates to this paper is The

Biosphere Rules article. This article, by Gregory Unruh, discusses how nature employs

production processes which are surprisingly efficient, environmentally sound, and widely

imitable. The first step for business leaders who wish to implement the biosphere rules is to re-

think sourcing strategies and dramatically simplify the number and types of materials that the

company uses during their production. According to the article, the purpose for this step is that

it is critical if the company is striving to recycle in a cost effective manner (Unruh, 2011).

Companies often use toxic-materials screens to weed out undesirable materials from their

supply chains. Toxic-materials screens can be as simple as defining a banned list of substances

which are obvious to laboratory analysis and high dollar consultants. According to the article,

although these screens do make sense, it is often a very slow process for managers to overcome.

The key is to choose materials which are physically capable of being upcycled (Unruh, 2011).

"Upcycling is the process of converting waste materials or useless products into new materials or

products of better quality or a higher environmental value," (Wikipedia.org).

The second step to The Biosphere Rules, which complements step one, is to rethink

design. Innovative product development requires firms to think about product design by looking

at the end first. In other words, to make virtuous recycling work, managers need to plan at the

beginning of the product design for the end of the product's life. If the product is being thrown

away at the end of its useful life, eco-efficient managers need to plan to minimize the amount of


materials in their products. If the materials can be recovered economically, the strategy can be

adjusted accordingly. This article discussed Polyamid 2000, who had nearly five billion tons of

carpet waste being dumped into landfills annually in the 1990s. Less than five percent of waste

carpet was being recycled in that era which led to NGO and governmental uproar. Polyamid

constructed a state-of-the-art facility which was expected to extract 20 million pounds of new

Nylon 6 from 250 million pounds of waste carpet each year. Unfortunately, the strategy failed

because it was neither economical nor sustainable. The company, which was actually trying to

be sustainable through this strategy, ultimately starved itself to death and closed operations.

According to the article, manufacturers can avoid this pitfall by cycling up and designing

recovery value in at the outset (Unruh, 2011).

According to the EPA's website, there are different approaches to reducing material and

waste expenses depending on the type of organization. Reducing transport packaging, changing

office operations, and adjusting manufacturing processes are all possibilities to consider. For

example, many offices have stacks of printed purchase orders and documents that could be

converted into electronic systems like Electronic Data Interchange (EDI). "EDI is the structured

transmission of data between organizations by electronic means. It is used to transfer electronic

documents or business data from one computer system to another computer system, i.e. from one

trading partner to another trading partner without human intervention," (Wikipedia.org).

Another consideration is to use alternative packaging that could use less material or reduce the

weight for shipping costs. Products could also be redesigned to be smaller, use different

materials, weigh less to reduce shipping, etc. (EPA.gov).


Dell has recently developed a sustainable packaging strategy which includes an

innovative mushroom-based packaging solution. This solution is an advanced biotechnology

that has been sponsored by the National Science Foundation, the US EPA, and the US

Department of Agriculture. This innovation is a way to utilize common agricultural waste

products such as rice, cotton, and wheat chaff to replace environmentally unsustainable products

such as polyethylene and styrofoam in packaging. This is a good example of sustainable

upcycling. Not only is this technology environmentally friendly, it also reduces the amount of

packing materials needed. The mushroom packaging is unique because it is actually grown,

rather than manufactured. Waste products, like cotton hulls and wheat chaffs, are placed in a

mold which is inoculated with mushroom spawn. The cushions take five to ten days to grow and

become the root structure of the mushroom. The energy needed to create these mushroom

cushions is supplied naturally by the carbohydrates and sugars from the waste; therefore, there is

no need to use energy which is based on carbon or nuclear fuels. This innovation has been

growing a large amount of support, and similar technologies are being developed globally

(Campbell, 2011).

Dell has made a commitment to developing and delivering packaging solutions that are

environmentally friendly. The company recently adopted a policy that they call the Three Cs,

which focuses on the cube (reducing box size), the content (what materials are used), and the

curb (convenient and acceptable for local recycling services). Dell has an aggressive plan to

eliminate 20 million pounds of packaging materials by 2012. Additionally, Dell has a goal to

ensure that 75 percent of their packaging is curbside recyclable by 2012 (Campbell, 2011).


Pepsi-Cola saved $44 million by making adjustments to their shipping solutions. The

company switched from corrugated to reusable plastic shipping containers which saved 196

million pounds of corrugated materials. Dow Corning saved over $2 million dollars and

conserved 7.8 million pounds of steel by reconditioning their steel drums in 1995. Additionally,

HASBRO, Inc. saved $400,000 and conserved over 763,000 pounds of material simply by

reducing the thickness of their shipping containers by 15 percent. Technological advancement in

shipping solutions has not only positively impacted the environment, but also profitability for

pro-active businesses (EPA.gov).

Bob Willard's second sustainability benefit that this paper will address is reduced energy

expenses. As demonstrated above, technological advancements in shipping solutions have

reduced energy expenses; however, there are other innovations to consider as well. According to

the US Department of Energy, renewable energy technologies and energy efficiency innovations

are the two main categories that businesses can consider. Renewable energy includes a plethora

of topics such as solar power, wind power, water power, biomass, geothermal, hydrogen cells,

and fuel cells. Energy efficiency topics include buildings, vehicles, electronics, appliances, IT

infrastructure, and others (U.S. Department of Energy).

The article Strategy and Society, by Michael Porter and Mark Kramer, discussed Whole

Foods as a company who was founded at stage five of Willard's five-stage sustainability

continuum model. The article stated that the company purchased renewable wind energy credits

equal to one hundred percent of its electricity use for all of its retail stores and facilities.

Additionally, spoiled produce and other biodegradable waste is sent to regional composting

centers, and their trucks are being converted to run on bio-fuels. The company is committed to

natural and environmentally friendly operating practices. They focus on purchasing from local


farmers and avoid approximately 100 common ingredients, which have been deemed unhealthy

or environmentally damaging. Nearly every imaginable aspect of the company's value chain is

structured around the social dimensions of its value proposition. The implementation of

sustainability into the strategic alignment of the company has allowed Whole Foods to enjoy a

competitive advantage with the ability to command premium prices through a niche market

selling organic, natural, and healthy foods (Porter & Kramer, 2006).

Many organizations, such as Whole Foods, are using renewable energy as part of their

business strategy. The EPA has created the Green Power Partnership which is a voluntary

program which encourages companies to buy renewable energy as a way to reduce the

environmental impacts associated with purchased electricity use. Partners in this program

include Fortune 500 companies, governmental agencies, universities, and small to medium sized

businesses. The EPA lists the following as benefits to the program: avoid carbon dioxide

emissions; reduce air pollution; hedge against future electricity prices; serve as a brand

differentiator; generate customer, investor, or stakeholder loyalty and employee pride; enhance

public image; and demonstrate civic leadership (Green Power Partnership).

Intel Corporation is currently ranked number one on the EPA's Green Power Partnership.

In fact, the EPA's website states that Intel uses over 87 percent green power. The company

purchases over 2.5 billion kilowatt-hours a year of renewable energy certificates. This

renewable energy is generated from wind, solar, low impact hydro, geothermal, and biomass

sources, all of which are Green-e certified. Furthermore, Intel was awarded the Green Power

Leadership Award in 2010, the Partner of the Year in 2008, and the Partner of the Year in 2009.

Intel's investment in green power has the equivalent environmental impact of taking over

340,000 passenger cars off of the road annually. This number is also equivalent to the amount of


electricity to power over 215,000 average-sized American homes annually. Intel's President and

CEO, Paul Otellini, said, "Our renewable purchase is just one part of a multi-faceted approach to

protect the environment, and one that we hope spurs additional development and demand for

renewable energy," (Partner Profile).

In addition to renewable energy, there are numerous innovations that can be leveraged by

companies to reduce energy usage as well. In 2010, buildings used approximately 40 percent of

the energy consumed in the United States economy alone, with a cost of over $400 billion.

Improvements in efficiency can be leveraged to make these buildings more efficient and build a

stronger economy. New innovations in lighting, insulation, climate control, analytics, and

maintenance allow companies to improve efficiencies like never before. In fact, President

Obama announced the Better Building Initiative to make commercial buildings 20 percent more

efficient by 2020. Additionally, this program will accelerate investments in private sector energy

efficiency. This program, announced in February 2011, provides over $500 million in federal

funding which allows communities to expand the building improvement industry and help the

United States strive towards a cleaner energy future. The Department of Energy is partnering

with organizations to demonstrate innovative and replicable approaches to improve efficiencies

in offices, schools, hospitals and homes across the nation (Better Buildings).

Another sector which uses a high volume of energy is information technology (IT). In

fact, it is estimated that IT accounts for at least two percent of global energy use. Because of this

awareness, there has been a significant amount of discussion revolving around "Green IT" over

the past several years. IBM's website states that data centers use 10 to 30 times more energy per

square foot compared to office space. The goal of Green IT is to make energy efficiency a key

metric when measuring IT operation effectiveness. IBM's website also states, "By combining


hardware, software and services offerings, IBM can help companies improve service, better

manage risk, and resolve resource constraints-all while reducing overall energy costs by 15% to

40%," (Green IT).

As mentioned, studies have shown that IT accounts for at least two percent of the world's

energy use; therefore, new companies are emerging with innovations to reduce energy

consumption in this space (Appendix B). There have been numerous advancements in

technology that allow companies to save significant amounts of money through IT efficiencies.

In fact, Green Revolution Cooling is a revolutionary company that has developed a non-

conductive white mineral oil that holds 1,200 times more heat by volume than air to submerge

servers. According to the company's website, although many industrial machines are already

using liquid cooled technologies, most servers in large, corporate data centers are still air cooled.

Considering that the cooling costs are many times more expensive than the hardware itself, it

certainly seems like a paradigm shift in IT could make a significant impact on energy efficiency.

According to their website, Green Revolution Cooling can reduce cooling energy use by over 90

percent while reducing server power by 10 to 20 percent at the same time. (Green Revolution

Cooling).

Another strategy to reduce energy consumption in IT involves a wider use of cloud

computing technology. Cloud computing, in simplistic terms, means outsourcing a company's IT

needs. These technologies can range from data storage to software applications. Instead of the

traditional IT environment, where servers and data centers are hosted onsite at a company, cloud

computing consists of having the data servers and/or applications located offsite, and accessed

through the internet. A recent study by Microsoft, Accenture, and WSP suggests that companies

can reduce energy use and carbon footprint of computing by up to 90 percent when leveraging


cloud services. Additionally, this study stated that smaller companies can actually enjoy more

benefits realization from cloud computing than larger corporations. For companies with over

10,000 users, the reduction of greenhouse gas (CHG) emissions is 30 percent, whereas firms

with 100 users receive a 90 percent reduction (Cloud Computing is Greener, 2011).

Bob Willard's third benefit of sustainability is reduced water expenses. Less than three

percent of the Earth's water is fresh, and the depletion of the world's water supply degrades our

natural environment and puts the future of mankind at risk. Efficient appliances, innovative

processes, improved irrigation practices, and overall behavioral changes can reduce water

consumption by as much as a third. From a corporate perspective, improving water efficiency

not only satisfies environmental and societal stakeholders, it also impacts the bottom line

positively through reduced water and sewer expenses (Water Conservation).

Gangi Brothers Packing Company, a tomato processing and canning plant in California,

adopted several water conservation practices in its factory to reduce water consumption from 148

billion gallons to 56.8 billion gallons in just six years. These improvements were able to save

the company $130,000 a year in water and sewer costs. Another excellent example is the Pacific

Power and Light Company in Wyoming which uses dry cooling to eliminate water losses from

cooling-water blow down, evaporation, and drift. The company equipped the station with an air-

cooled condenser, and steam from the turbine is distributed by overhead pipes into finned carbon

steel tubes which run to 69 fans. These fans force approximately 45 million cubic feet per

minute of air through eight million square feet of finned tubes which condense the steam. This

innovative system reduced water consumption from 4,000 gallons per minute to about 300

gallons per minute (Water Conservation).


Innovative technologies have also inspired businesses to take water waste and transform

it into an entirely new asset. As covered in class, Pepsi-Cola's Walkers potato chip plant in

Leicester, England plans to condense steam and reuse the captured water to reduce sewer and

water costs. Potatoes are 80 percent water, and this factory alone slices and fries 350,000 tons a

year. Most of the water from the potatoes is lost as steam which is released into the atmosphere.

According to Martyn Seal, the company's European director of sustainability, this innovation

could save the plant $1 million annually (Stanford, 2011).

Analysis

Technology and innovation alone will not make companies sustainable. Companies must

leverage technological advancements to empower their business once a sustainability model has

been planned and implemented. As the research has shown, through innovation and technology,

companies have the ability to maximize efficiencies, reduce waste, increase profits, and impact

society in a positive manner. Considering the fact that over half of companies' assets today are

intangible assets such as good-will, reputation, and human capital, corporate social responsibility

is critical for businesses to remain competitive and prosperous (Waddock, 2008). As seen in

recent news with the Mattel/Greenpeace protest, social and viral media can damage a company's

reputation, or shift a company's stock price in just a few hours (Hughes, 2011). By including all

stakeholders in a company's strategy, these risks can be mitigated while simultaneously

increasing profits and the overall value of the firm, as well as positively impacting the

environment and society. This strategic approach is also known as the triple bottom line.


A successful society fosters successful corporations. Education, health care, and equal

opportunity are critical to sustain a productive workforce. For example, companies that create

safer products and working conditions will not only attract customers, but also a higher quality

talent pool. Additionally, risk is reduced, which will decrease accidents and lawsuits while

increasing profits. When companies efficiently utilize land, water, and other natural resources,

they become more productive. All of these examples explain how doing good can create good

for an organization. This strategy supports sustainability. On the other hand, a healthy society

also needs healthy companies. "No social program can rival the business sector when it comes to

creating jobs, wealth, and innovation that improve standards of living and social conditions over

time," (Porter & Kramer, 2006).

The three benefits that this paper focused on, reduced material and waste expenses,

reduced energy expenses, and reduced water expenses, are the simplest to adopt first because all

companies are interested in profitability. This paper has been created to provide some insight as

to why corporations need to pay attention to sustainability if they have not already done so. The

concepts behind sustainability are rather simple; however, the terms and concepts behind the

strategy have been misused, greenwashed, and confused by the majority of the public in the

United States. Making an adjustment to save money may be environmentally friendly; however,

the intent should not simply stop at attempting to save money on a single, one-off project. The

key is for companies to embrace sustainability into their culture, as part of their strategic

objectives and overall business strategy. As companies adopt sustainable practices into their

corporate culture, other efficiencies and innovations will emerge throughout the company,

advancing it up Willard's five-stage sustainability continuum model. If the corporate culture

embraces sustainability into every aspect of their daily routine, innovations will evolve


expeditiously and create new revenue streams, a stronger public image, and a competitive

advantage. If a company is not founded at level five of Willard's model, it should strive to

achieve level four, the integrated strategy phase. These firms focus on all stakeholders and inject

sustainability practices into their corporate DNA.

This paper is not suggesting that becoming a sustainable enterprise is something that will

happen overnight. It is designed to provide insight on the direction of today's dynamic, high-

impact business environment. The companies who embrace sustainability as a strategy will

overcome adversity and not only survive, but thrive in today's ultra-competitive atmosphere.

There are indeed parallels to innovation, international business, and sustainable enterprises. The

study of international business is a fairly recent phenomenon, and the accelerated knowledge of

foreign business methodologies, individual cultures, and best practices have improved our global

economy immensely. Prior to having advanced technology, the costs to seek and gather

information were very high, which limited consumers and corporations alike. Competitive

pressure forces companies to improve efficiencies and reduce costs. Sustainable enterprises

enjoy the benefit of improving operational efficiencies and reducing costs while satisfying its

fringe stakeholders simultaneously.

Although technology and innovation evolves rapidly, a large portion of the world never

benefits from these innovations. Companies also have a tremendous opportunity to focus more

on the Base of the Pyramid (BOP) to increase market share, maximize profits, benefit society,

satisfy shareholder expectations, remain sustainable, and satisfy social and environmental

stakeholders. This phenomenon is known as the "great leap" to the base of the economic

pyramid, where there are approximately four billion people aspiring to join the global market for

the first time. Although the main reason may be for profit, and not simply to do the right thing


and lift people out of poverty, the leap would be accomplishing both of these at the same time

(Hart & Christensen, 2002).

Another important issue to consider is the fact that the world does not currently have a

universal reporting standard to provide transparency and apples-to-apples comparisons between

companies. In order for mankind to embrace sustainability on a universal scale, companies must

incorporate standardized reporting procedures. The Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) is the

most well-known, global network-based organization that strives to provide a universal

framework for corporations to adopt universal sustainability reporting. GRI's Reporting

Framework is created through a conscious, multi-stakeholder process. This framework is

designed to establish the principals and performance indicators which organizations can leverage

to measure and report their economic, environmental, and social performance. According to

GRI's website, the cornerstone of the framework is the Sustainability Reporting Guidelines, and

the third version of the guidelines – known as the G3 Guidelines - was published in 2006 and is a

free public asset (Global Reporting Initiative).

By adopting sustainability into an organization's strategy, and leveraging a universal

framework for reporting standards, stakeholders will have transparency into the good and the bad

of individual corporations. With accountability, companies will be forced to recognize the value

and the impact of becoming a sustainable enterprise. Other technologies, such as business

intelligence software, need to embrace the universal reporting standards into the development of

the software. Companies, like Oracle, IBM, SAP, Microsoft, and others, all currently have

robust business intelligence software solutions; however, they are not created equally, and no

universal standard exists in this arena. By partnering with the Global Reporting Initiative, these

technology companies will provide an enhanced value to their customers, while at the same time


strengthening their brands and profitability. I certainly feel that the first company in this space

who recognizes the importance of this alignment can create a competitive advantage in the

marketplace. Most of the reporting solutions available have the functionality to be programmed

to meet GRI standards; however, I am suggesting that these standards become out-of-the-box

features for companies to leverage.

Once companies have the ability to seamlessly integrate transparency through these

technologies, creating additional eco-efficiencies will be less complex and more scalable. For

example, if a company strives to reduce energy consumption by a specified number, it needs to

have the ability to collect, examine, and report the data. All companies have the ability to collect

data; however, most organizations face the challenge of how to consolidate, examine, and report

it. Once mastered, companies can incorporate best practices and methodologies, which have

been learned from data analysis, into other areas of the business. Most companies currently

focus on making inefficient designs more efficient; however, companies with sustainability

incorporated into their business strategy will instead be able to design efficiently from inception.

This relates back to the second step of The Biosphere Rules, which suggests that companies

should rethink design, by looking at the end first. In other words, businesses need to plan at the

beginning of the product design for the end of the product's life. This example again circles back

to the argument that as companies embrace technology, additional innovations will be

constructed as the company strives toward becoming a sustainable enterprise.

Conclusion

In order for growth and survival in today's business environment, companies are faced

with increasing pressure to not only attract and retain customers, but also to satisfy multiple


stakeholders with various objectives. Today, customers are more sophisticated and have higher

expectations than those in past decades; therefore, better products and services are demanded.

Improved approaches are required by firms in order to remain sustainable, and companies are

forced to adapt by constantly researching and developing new, cutting-edge products. This

intense, competitive business environment forces companies to operate more efficiently.

Sustainable enterprises not only maximize efficiencies, but also create competitive advantages in

the marketplace. Through innovation and technology, companies have the ability to maximize

efficiencies, reduce waste, increase profits, and impact society in a positive manner. As

previously mentioned, over half of companies' assets today are intangible assets such as good-

will, reputation, and human capital. All of these intangible assets rely on the quality of

shareholder relationships which the company has developed. The evolution in the concept of

responsibility infrastructure focuses on the integration of corporate responsibility with business

models. Additionally, the integrated strategy recognizes the impact of companies' business

strategies and practices on societies, stakeholders, and sustainability. Innovation has created

more pressure for businesses to become socially responsible. As demonstrated, technology and

innovation have also proven to fuel eco-efficiencies. Furthermore, this paper has shown that as

companies embrace technology, combined with a sustainable strategy, additional innovations

will be constructed as these companies strive towards becoming sustainable. Simply put,

technology and innovation will fuel the transition to sustainable enterprises.


Appendices

Appendix A:

(Willard, 2011)


Appendix B:


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How Innovation and Technology Will Fuel the Transition to Sustainable Enterprises by Eric Cuka

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