Watch a replay of the webinar here, or scroll down for a summary and a preview.
Sustainability issues can change over time – is your business strategy evolving with it? Areas like the circular economy, Scope 3 carbon emissions or social sustainability might become more important to your stakeholders. To stay competitive, it’s essential your strategy is up to date.
In our webinar, Adam Weller, the Sustainability Manager at Waste Management, explains the company’s updated sustainability strategy and how it responds to changes in stakeholders’ expectations over the last six years. Adam also shared how Waste Management is providing new services to support a carbon neutral future and a more circular way of operating.
Adam joined Martin Fryer, our Head of Strategy and Impact New Zealand. Martin discussed how we develop and update strategy for clients using materiality assessments.
Here's a preview of the webinar
In the webinar we learned
Materiality assessments connect you with your stakeholders. It shows you commit to transparency by asking stakeholders for their views. Waste Management talked with suppliers, customers, local Māori, high school students and other groups.
Materiality assessments help you identify important sustainability topics. They also help you uncover business opportunities and manage risks and inform your strategy.
Materiality assessments identify topics you may not have thought about. For example, Waste Management's stakeholders expect it to educate New Zealand about recycling – something the company had not considered.
Updating your strategy keeps you competitive. Waste Management has identified new business streams, including waste audits and circular economy services. Five-year-old strategic goals are no longer relevant. Martin recommends businesses run a materiality assessment every three years (and more often if something major changes).