1. Laws that once applied only to big business are encroaching on smaller
enterprises. Even bakeries and gas stations must now comply with clean air
regulations.
2. Small companies often have an edge in innovation. Of the more than
$100 billion in R&D money that each year is plowed into the "clean tech"
marketplace, the bulk goes to new, smaller ventures who historically have
produced more breakthrough products and services.
3. Going after the consumption choices of individuals remains difficult
politically, but advocacy groups have no problem demanding that small
businesses curb their impacts. So while personal cars may not come under NGO
attack, the emissions from taxi fleets or delivery services make a
relatively attractive target.
4. The Information Age is reducing the costs of pursuing smaller-scale
actors. New sensors, information systems, and communications technologies
make tracking pollution and monitoring regulatory compliance cheaper every
day. Even tiny enterprises now find it hard to fly under the radar.
5. Large customers are putting pressure on small-business suppliers to
comply with environmental standards. One little New York-based software
developer we know found itself answering tough questions posed by a
Tokyo-based telecom company with an aggressive auditing program for its
supply chain. To stay on the list of preferred suppliers, the company had to
implement an Environmental Management System -- much more than a company its
size would normally do.
6. Small companies can be more nimble than their larger competitors.
Entrepreneurial businesses can move quickly to take advantage of changing
circumstances or meet niche demands. Q Collection, a "sustainable"home
furnishings company, produces couches, tables, and chairs without toxic dyes
and with wood sourced entirely from sustainably managed forests. The
furniture is priced at the high end of the market, but the company has found
a customer base of interior designers who want the natural option. And
Hawaii-based Kona Blue has launched an environmentally friendly fish farm to
meet the growing demand for fish raised free of hormones and antibiotics.
The above is an excerpt from the book
Green to Gold: How Smart Companies
Use Environmental Strategy to Innovate, Create Value, and Build Competitive
Advantage by Daniel C. Esty and Andrew S. Winston (Published by John Wiley &
Sons, Inc.; 978-0-470-39374-1). The above excerpt is a digitally scanned
reproduction of text from print. Although this excerpt has been proofread,
occasional errors may appear due to the scanning process. Please refer to
the finished book for accuracy. Copyright © 2012 Daniel C. Esty and Andrew S. Winston
Author Bio Daniel C. Esty, co-author of Green to Gold: How Smart
Companies Use Environmental Strategy to Innovate, Create Value, and Build
Competitive Advantage (Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.;
978-0-470-39374-1), is the Hillhouse Professor at Yale University and
Director of the Center for Business and the Environment at Yale (www.yale.edu/CBEY).
Author and editor of nine books and dozens of articles, Dan is one of the
world's leading corporate environmental strategy experts with twenty years
of experience working with companies of all sizes and across many industries
worldwide. He served as senior official at the U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency in the early 1990s and is presently Chairman of Esty Environmental
Partners (www.EstyEP.com).
Andrew S. Winston, co-author of Green to Gold: How Smart Companies Use
Environmental Strategy to Innovate, Create Value, and Build Competitive
Advantage (Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.; 978-0-470-39374-1), advises
some of the world's leading companies on how to profit from environmental
thinking. He is also a highly respected and dynamic speaker, exploring the
business benefits of going green with audiences around the world. Andrew's
earlier career included corporate strategy at Boston Consulting Group and
management positions in marketing and business development at Time Warner
and MTV. See www.andrewwinston.com for more information.
January 2009
