Prominent CEOs Discuss Corporate Green Programs at
WSJ ECO:nomics Event

March 17th, 2008

Last week I had the pleasure to attend the Wall Street Journal’s ECO:nomics Conference on Creating Environmental Capital. It was a sellout and featured prominent CEOs such as Lee Scott of Wal-Mart, Jeff Immelt of GE and Patricia Woertz of ADM, who addressed important issues like how does a multinational giant hedge its bets on the green business frontier; how are they adapting to soaring energy prices while simultaneously implementing environmental mandates; and who they believe will win or lose in the global trade of greenhouse gas emission credits.

The biggest question, of course, is how much shareholders are going to allow companies to sacrifice profits to undertake environmental initiatives?

I had an opportunity to meet with another conference speaker, James Rogers, CEO of Duke Energy, and commend him on his leadership in driving sustainability in the utility sector. They are implementing our software across the entire enterprise as the backbone for its environmental, health and safety information management system.

I also attended a round table lunch led by Shai Agassi, who has just raised $200 million to start a new company. He is the founder and chief executive officer of Project Better Place, which he formed to install, scale and operate regional and global infrastructures that are necessary for electric vehicles. With a personal passion for solving large-scale social and environmental issues, Agassi will manage the operation of international electric vehicle fleets and partners with electric car manufacturers.

Agassi, creator of SAP’s NetWeaver platform, previously served as president of SAP’s products and technology group, and was a member of the company’s executive board.

Other opinions heard at the conference:

• Immelt says he smells the chance to make a lot of money, and that GE’s green business will grow overseas, and also perhaps in the U.S.;
• Scott has committed Wal-Mart to a zero waste and 100% renewable energy strategy. He said he has no idea when the company will meet that objective;
• Several speakers said shareholders and social activists are clearly at the corporate gates, driving much of the “greening.” But, they contended, corporate boards do have a fiduciary duty to analyze risks that can come from climate change, and many boards are doing just that.

Tags: eco:nomics conference environmental capital environmental initiatives environmental mandates greenhouse gas emission renewable energy strategy

Entry Filed under: Sustainability, Corporate Responsibility, Corporate Governance