Achieving High Performance in an Era of Climate Change

The proliferation of news coverage about climate change continues daily as scientists, governments, consumers, journalists and the general public exchange views on the issue and its potential implications. For some time, Accenture has been tracking the complex scientific and political discussions surrounding climate change and various proposals for responding to the threat. What we find in our discussions is a high level of uncertainty: about specific ways in which climate change will affect countries, including Australia, and businesses; about the impact of regulation and global cooperation; and also about the opportunities climate change presents. Despite this uncertainty, it is apparent that organisations expecting to achieve and sustain high performance must accelerate their responses to shifting attitudes and behaviours around climate change—the early movers will hold an incalculable advantage.

Accenture conducted a wide-ranging research study based on surveys of more than 500 business executives around the world. The resulting report provides businesses with a view of some specific actions to consider in order to achieve high performance in this changing political, economic and business environment. Read how HSBC—one of the world’s largest financial institutions—used a three-point Carbon Management Plan to become the world’s first major banks in 2005 to become carbon-neutral. Interestingly, Australia and New Zealand were two of the four countries in which HSBC invested in carbon offset projects.

Access the report: Achieving High Performance in an Era of Climate Change