Companies should have an executive whose chief mandate is to implement environmentally friendly energy strategies, according to a recent survey of senior corporate executives.
There might not seem to be much connection between attorneys and “chief energy officers,” but look again. The survey finding is one more indication that smart litigation management increasingly goes beyond the law itself.
In today’s world, the strength of a company’s reputation should be part of its strategy for risk management and litigation. Public opinion and corporate reputation can influence not just the outcome of litigation, but even a company’s ability to get a fair trial. A 2004 survey of Fortune 1000 corporate counsels found that 90% believed it was a priority for their company to have a campaign to manage its reputation in the court of public opinion.
Every company’s reputation rests on the impacts of its business practices on people and the environment, which are, of course, the basis of its communications about itself. The best attorneys see the trends, external as well as internal, with the potential to affect corporate reputation and incorporate them into their counsel.
Energy usage and global warming are exactly such a trend. The recent energy-strategy survey showed how far corporate executives have come down the road of environmental awareness. The survey polled 420 senior executives with companies in the United States, China, the United Kingdom and Canada. It was conducted in March and April of this year by the opinion research firm Penn Schoen & Berland, for Hill & Knowlton, a global public relations firm with offices in Seattle, Portland and Spokane.
The survey reveals how much global warming and energy — coupled with the related issues of sustainability and environmental footprint — will influence companies’ business practices and reputation management strategies. It showed that the trends’ influence already extends globally, from Europe across North America to the Far East.
Finally, it showed that most executives believe their companies need a strategy to address energy and global warming, but most companies have yet to develop such a strategy. For those that do, improved corporate reputation may be the biggest and most important return on investment.
Here are some of the findings:
82% of the executives are closely following the issue of global warming. In China, 86% are closely following it. In the U.S., 77% are doing so.
65% say their companies have not determined an energy strategy, including 77% in China and 67% in the U.S.
In the U.K., companies are farther ahead, with only 51% of executives saying their companies haven’t developed a strategy. And 57% of U.K. executives say there is someone in their company who is currently tasked with defining their company’s energy strategy.
In China, 82% of the executives said no one in their company was tasked with defining an energy strategy, versus 70% in the U.S. and 55% in Canada.
75% say CEOs are ultimately responsible for implementing public commitments to reduce their companies’ impact on the environment.
Nearly 84% of executives in China, the U.K. and Canada agree that there is an emerging need for a “chief energy officer” to implement environmentally friendly business strategies. Executives in the U.S. are less convinced; only 66% said such a position is needed.
Half of all executives feel that “improved corporate reputation” is the way their company should measure the return on investment in environmentally friendly business strategies. In China, 61% said improved reputation should be the primary measurement.
As global warming and sustainability issues galvanize corporate stakeholder groups, from environmental organizations to public policy makers, the survey findings clearly establish energy as another issue of importance to corporate reputations. In addition, they’re a powerful reminder that attorneys need to think broadly and strategically in managing corporate risk and litigation.
Steve Boyer is senior vice president with the Seattle office of Rockey Hill & Knowlton, which is the Northwest division of Hill & Knowlton, a global public relations firm. His practice focuses on issues and reputation management.
