Getting Strategic About Sustainability

Companies often struggle with sustainability because they try to address too many issues at once, resulting in scattered efforts and little impact. To help leaders focus their sustainability strategies, Jay et al introduce a framework consisting of four lenses: business value, stakeholder influence, science and technology, and purpose. Each lens brings different issues into focus and uses different types of data and methods of inquiry. By investing in and innovating around issues that fall at the intersection of all four lenses, companies can effectively allocate resources and achieve meaningful sustainability outcomes. They use the example of Keurig Dr Pepper to illustrate the framework. The lenses help balance external pressures with internal priorities and objective data with stakeholder perceptions. This framework provides a way for companies to choose what truly matters and develop a focused sustainability strategy.