Business leaders today largely understand the sustainability imperative and many have made strides to improve their corporate ESG initiatives and reporting. However, some ventures still do not see how embedding sustainability into their business models can be of value to them, especially given this tends to be a costly process in the long run.
This needs to change: businesses must prioritise sustainability for the betterment of our planet. Every actor should look at how we can enact change at scale. Not only will this be important in driving change, but it will also become requisite for long-term success. Fortunately, interested businesses have an ally that will enable them to seamlessly enhance sustainability efforts: blockchain technology and its enterprise-grade offshoot, VeChain.
The business case for sustainability
Investing time and resources into sustainability endeavours will enable businesses of all sizes to meet changing investor and consumer patterns and grow their market share.
A recent PWC survey found that 75% of investors consider sustainability important in decision-making, 57% look for greater clarity in sustainability reporting, and 94% believe corporate sustainability reporting contains, to some extent, unsupported claims. In other words, investors care about sustainability initiatives and reporting on them, but don’t actually trust what companies are saying.
According to a Deloitte survey, consumers are also basing spending decisions on sustainability initiatives and actions. Respondents were more likely to trust a brand whose ethical and sustainability commitment is recognised by a third party (34%) or if they have a transparent and ESG-forward supply chain (32%). They are also 27% more likely to purchase from brands that care about how they impact people and our planet.
Beyond attracting investors and consumers by showing a commitment to sustainability, companies also believe they are likely to experience a 30% growth in revenue from circularity, which involves extending the lifecycle of products.
Blockchain: the on-ramp to greater enterprise sustainability
Because of its transparent and immutable nature, blockchain technology provides the optimal infrastructure for startups in the 4YFN community and beyond to meet sustainability goals and provide verifiable and accountable reporting to investors and consumers. Furthermore, the tech’s ability to streamline supply chain processes will greatly aid enterprises in introducing sustainability into those operations, tracking products throughout their lifecycle, and introducing circularity into business models.
At MWC, the premiere tech innovation conference, startups and enterprises can meet with the VeChain team to understand how they can benefit from its sustainable infrastructure, boasting a proven track record of success with corporate titans like BCG, Walmart, and PwC. At the conference, VeChain will be announcing an exciting initiative that will help businesses on their vital sustainability mission to ensure a better tomorrow.