Investment in Sustainability is still seen as a competitive advantage

Business leaders have been navigating a very uncertain policy context – just think on the impact of the tariffs wars, regulatory rollbacks and an overall pushback against climate progress in the US. Still, what we are seeing is also a strong momentum that drives Sustainability practices and innovation through that uncertainty. And that is because… it’s the right thing to do from an economic and business perspective:

1)     - Let’s think about energy generation. “Clean energies have already reached a tipping point that drives innovation costs down and performance upward”, and that means solar and wind are now the cheapest energy sources in most markets. https://fortune.com/2025/03/18/clean-technology-climate-policy-environment/

2)      - A recent survey of CFOs, conducted by BDO, highlighted that over 75% of them are increasing maintaining sustainability investments, as they look at its innovation and new business opportunities as primary and strategic benefits.

3)      - 85% of supply chain executives (on a Prologis study) reported they looked at Sustainability as a core objective, mainly because of its importance on efficiency, energy usage and cost reliability, waste management and access to circular economy benefits (I suspect this is about raw materials’ availability). This reflects the urgent need for future-proof strategies that align environmental goals with operational resilience.

 

So, the momentum around sustainability continues to grow, even amidst policy uncertainty. And that is because it's becoming increasingly clear that sustainability (especially when mixed with innovation) is not just a trend—it’s a strategic advantage.

Get there early!

"Get there early"! Sometimes it is a simple recommendation - "get there early so you can get the best seats in the house", "get there early so you adapt yourself to the context", "get there early so you can have great conversations". We all play this logic in our heads.

But "Get there early!" is also a business statement. "Get there" means an action, a direction, somewhere you want to be, actually a vision or a goal. "Early" means in the right timing, probably before the masses arrive, so you can carve an advantage. So, for businesses, it is a strategy - it is about finding new markets, new products, new customers, ahead of the competition.

When I look at the next ten years, I see the future being driven by technology, sustainability (oh yes, unfortunately, we will be talking a lot about this) and people. For any business, my recommendation would be to start working in that future - "Get there early!" so you can play from a vantage point.

The hour seems dark

The hour seems dark for many. All across the last few weeks, I heard similar questions on the Sustainability meetings I attended. “Is organization X still committed to its ESG targets?”; “How will the Board react to the investors increasing pressure to deliver immediate results vs the longer-term sustainability commitments?”. I read a similar tone in the Women’s Day posts of the past weekend. Good people (some of them the most competent, professional, intelligent I ever met) expressed their concerns, said they feel the world is moving backwards on Women’ Rights. I read all of these, and I nod, I understand.

But I then have a “but”. “But…”. But… these were never short-term fights. But… we always knew these changes take time. But… we need to recognize that progress is made of backs and fore’s. But… we should remind ourselves that we are not alone, we are millions, we are committed.

But… We are not doing it only for ourselves. We are doing it for the ones who depend on our will, on us. The ones who don’t have a voice that is strong enough, that are invisible to the masses, that feel they don’t have any power (but should have). The ones who are balancing between what is right or immediate. The ones… well, the ones that we are raising, that we commit to with everything we have.

But… as Victor Hugo once said “You can’t stop an idea whose time has come”. And these ideas, a better planet for all of us, freedom, the right to be different and voice a different opinion, a different way of doing things, globally. Well, they just sound like, you know, “the future”. That we are all shaping.

P.S- And yes, there is an incredible and proven business value in all I have written. Maybe one just needs the right attitude to unlock it, now and for the future. And shape and grab the opportunities on days to come (and that might be tomorrow, really).

AI Military to Civilian

 From a pacifist, this is a hard thing to say. But the biggest challenge from AI government side investment for the next 10 years is, probably, how to establish partnerships that will allow to generate civil business value from a tsunami investment in the military.

For context, think on how WWII transformed aerial transportation or the space-race shaped computing. That’s probably the way to think on this.

Trust

"Trust". "Trust" is the most important asset in a negotiation. It is the foundation in which any deal is based. If a party doesn't trust the other one, the deal won't happen - it will fall apart and crumble.

Any good salesperson (or any good business person) will tell you this. Yet, sometimes, and nowadays especifically, it seems to be forgotten.

Sustainability as competitive advantage

Sustainability in business is often only understood as merely a set of regulatory requirements and reporting obligations – and at utmost, you should achieve simple incremental gains annually. I believe this is a very narrow view that fails to capture the true potential of sustainability as a strategic tool for companies. Because if we choose to look at sustainability from a dynamic and value-driven approach, we find sustainability can be about looking at a business through a different dimension to find and unlock competitive advantages.

 

By viewing sustainability as a lens through which to examine and reimagine business operations, companies can uncover new opportunities for innovation, efficiency, and growth. We start looking at supply and value chains and opportunities to short them, improving cash flow, transportation costs and their footprint. We view circular-economy as an opportunity to reduce waste and access raw materials at improved cost. We unlock innovation opportunities for value-added products, sometimes even creating new segments or markets. This approach prompts organizations to rethink their processes, products, and services in ways that not only reduce negative impacts but also create positive value for a broader range of stakeholders.

 

When sustainability is integrated into core business strategy, it can become a powerful driver of competitive advantage. Companies that embrace this perspective are better positioned to identify emerging market trends, manage risks, and build stronger relationships with customers, employees, and communities. They are more likely to develop innovative solutions that address pressing global challenges while simultaneously improving their bottom line. In essence, I believe this view of sustainability transforms it from a compliance exercise into a catalyst for business transformation and success in an ever-changing global landscape – and how can one not strive for people, planet and growth opportunities?

Do you know your questions?

I find it passionate to work with Big Data and Gen AI! They share this very specific trait – they know all the answers! Whatever you throw at Big Data pools or Gen AI, they will answer you back – no question marks, no hesitations, no “I don’t really know…”, “I need to find out more”,… They know it all! (It’s a bit like talking to ourselves when we were 15 years-old, but let’s not go down that way)

 

Now, this has an amazing consequence. More than ever, it highlights the importance of the question. If you can have all the answers (and, by the way, the quality is usually quite good, and it is constantly improving), then, the differentiators are in the questions you ask! Strategy definition is not on the answers anymore, but in the questions – and are you sure you are asking the right ones?

 

In Big Data pools, I always advised you to first have it clear what you want to know, instead of just looking at all the data, and trying to make sense of it. The risk of getting lost is tremendous. And the same happens with Artificial Intelligence – it will always give something back to you. If it is the right thing you needed, well… it depends…

 

So, focus on the question. Hone it. Own it. And never stop with the first one. Like in data, you can keep digging more and more – and those constant, well-thought questions, will keep on improving the quality of the outcome you get.