72 | Leadership in Sustainability – Adoption, Business Transformation, & Equity

The Data Binge

Sustainability is good for both business, and for the planet.

Dawn James, Microsoft US Director of Sustainability and Environmental Sciences, and Alex Robart, Microsoft Worldwide Strategy Leader for Energy & Sustainability, connect with us to share learning and experiences in how organizations can strategically approach a differentiated way to reach sustainability goals, that create competitive advantages, while also being good for our environment.

We are joined in this special episode by guest host Bob Familiar, Director of the Microsoft Technology Center in Boston. Bob is an experienced technical leader experiences in technologies that help organizations accelerate their vision to be more sustainable.

Discussion themes will include the following topics:

-How Microsoft leaders in Sustainability, communicate with customers about their sustainability journey: from adoption, to the elements of climate change mitigation

-Equity in decision making, and the importance of how organizations derive and allocate strategies against their sustainability goals

-The business opportunities of the transition to sustainable energy: the effort, the leadership, and the change management needed to successfully reframe the conversation

-Tangible solutions and technologies that fit into the sustainability conversation, and how the Microsoft ecosystem can empower organizations to achieve more for their sustainability goals

Navigate the Episode:

[06:20] An Introduction to the Microsoft Technology Center, and our guests

[07:36] General concepts around sustainability and it’s importance in the business domain

[15:25] How to understand and navigate sustainability in a very complex and evolving climate, from regulation through to organizational business objectives

[16:31] The importance of cross functional ownership, business decisions, and brand for meeting sustainability goals

[20:27] How sustainability is driving changes in customer/consumer behaviors

[22:42] Sustainability as a new business model and source of growth – a mindset shift

[23:30] The basic elements of a sustainability solution. (The 3 R’s)

[33:19] How to get started. How organizations should approach a sustainability strategy

[41:48] The value of data for sustainability. Use cases for data reporting for carbon footprints and energy costs, and how the cloud can accelerate evolving use cases in the data realm

[45:08] The complex challenges in climate change, its disproportionate impact on people and what organizations can do to address them

[48:58] The energy transition. The role of industries most responsible for the future of energy in decision making

[52:32] Technology, and the future of sustainability solutions and strategies

Memorable Quotes:

[19:55] “Sustainability is really having that introspection on who you are as an organization, and where you want to go, and then connecting the dots through digital enablement of that sustainability journey.” -Dawn James

[22:39] “Let's not think of sustainability just as a cost. Let's think about sustainability, as the next growth driver for your business for the next 30 years.” -Alex Robart

[46:38] “We must protect the most vulnerable among us, we must protect the people that are impacted by the most adverse effects of global warming, we have to provide justice. Because for us to have proper accountability for what it is that we're doing, especially if we're using database solutions, and we're pinching those database solutions on trust and transparency, then we must also be accountable.” -Dawn James

Resources:

Dawn James: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dawnejames/

Alex Robart: https://www.linkedin.com/in/arobart/

Bob Familiar: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bobfamiliar/

The proliferation of sustainability accounting standards comes with costs: https://www.economist.com/business/2020/10/03/the-proliferation-of-sustainability-accounting-standards-comes-with-costs

Prioritizing Equity in Policy and Decision-making: https://energycenter.org/thought-leadership/blog/prioritizing-equity-policy-and-decision-making

Recycling ocean plastic to help clean up our oceans: https://www.microsoft.com/en-ww/accessories/sustainability/ocean-plastic-mouse

Microsoft Cloud for Sustainability: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/sustainability
*The views and opinions expressed in this discussion are those of the guests and do not necessarily reflect the official position of their employer, Microsoft"

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Thank you for listening!

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Join the **New Monthly Newsletter** - Data Binge REFRESH: https://www.derekwesleyrussell.com/newsletter  

Interested in starting your own podcast? Some candid advice here: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/how-start-podcast-3-step-gono-go-beginners-guide-derek-russell