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• Case | HBS Case Collection | 2013 (Revised from original 2012 version)

  Dow Chemical: Innovating for Sustainability

  Robert G. Eccles, George Serafeim and Shelley Xin Li

  Dow Chemical is one of the few major American industrial corporations that was founded in the late 19th century that is still in existence. From its origins producing bromine out of the brine underneath Midland, Michigan, the company has evolved from a diversified commodity chemical company to an advanced materials company whose products and services can make its clients more sustainable. During the 1960s and 1970s the company received a series of external shocks in the form of negative public opinion for some of its activities. These challenged the company's perception as being a "good company" and made it realize it needed to more proactively seek outside perspectives on how the company was viewed and what it should do. This led to the formation of the Corporate Environmental Advisory Council in 1992 which was renamed the Sustainability External Advisory Council (SEAC) in 2008. With substantial input from the SEAC, the company set two ambitious sets of ten-year goals: 1996-2005 and 2006-2015 and was largely successful in meeting them or on the way to doing so. In 2011, Neil Hawkins, Vice President of Sustainability and EH&S (Environmental, Health and Safety) is trying to decide what the content and format of the next ten-year goals should be to ensure the company's viability on its 200th birthday. Should they be incremental goals like the ones for 2005 or ambitious stretch targets like the ones for 2015? Or should they be broad statements of principles that encourage innovating for sustainability throughout the company? A further challenge facing the company is that it was rapidly globalizing with a large portion of its workforce outside its Midland, Michigan headquarters, making it even more difficult to preserve a common culture and commitment to sustainability.

  Keywords: Innovation Strategy; Environmental Sustainability; Chemical Industry;

  Citation:

  Eccles, Robert G., George Serafeim, and Shelley Xin Li. "Dow Chemical: Innovating for Sustainability." Harvard Business School Case 112-064, May 2013. (Revised from original January 2012 version.)

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• Article | Harvard Business Review | May 2013

  The Performance Frontier: Innovating for a Sustainable Strategy

  Robert G. Eccles and George Serafeim

  By now most companies have sustainability programs. They're cutting carbon emissions, reducing waste, and otherwise enhancing operational efficiency. But a mishmash of sustainability tactics does not add up to a sustainable strategy. To endure, a strategy must address the interests of all stakeholders: investors, employees, customers, governments, NGOs, and society at large. To do that, it has to increase shareholder value while at the same time improving the firm's performance on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) dimensions. This article outlines a process that can be used to execute a sustainable strategy and extend the boundaries of The Performance Frontier.

  Keywords: sustainability; innovation; environment; governance; corporate reporting; corporate social responsibility;

  Citation:

  Eccles, Robert G., and George Serafeim. "The Performance Frontier: Innovating for a Sustainable Strategy." Harvard Business Review 91, no. 5 (May 2013).

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• Case | HBS Case Collection | 2013 (Revised from original 2013 version)

  Developing the Materiality Matrix at Telefónica

  Robert G. Eccles, George Serafeim and Asun Cano-Escoriaza

  Telefónica, one of the largest telecommunication companies in the world and headquartered in Spain, has been issuing a corporate sustainability report since 2002. In its 2011 Sustainability report, the company included a "materiality matrix," and was one of only five of the 97 companies in Spain that produced a sustainability report that year. The case describes the purpose of the materiality matrix, how it was developed, and the opportunities the company sees for improving it.

  Keywords: sustainability; sustainability reporting; sustainable strategy; CSR; corporate social responsibility; Communication Technology; Environmental Accounting; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Environmental Sustainability; Telecommunications Industry; Spain;

  Citation:

  Eccles, Robert G., George Serafeim, and Asun Cano-Escoriaza. "Developing the Materiality Matrix at Telefónica." Harvard Business School Case 413-088, May 2013. (Revised from original December 2012 version.)

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