User Manual

4
Business Resiliency and Energy Innovation
What are businesses doing? The vast
majority focus their sustainable energy
eorts on reducing energy costs in
facilities, which can often be as simple
as installing energy-saving light bulbs.
FIGURE 3
Unruh argues that executive mindsets
about energy are the greatest barriers
to energy innovation. Since utilities
provide electricity on demand to
everyone, generations of organizational
leaders expect electricity to be there
when they turn on the switch. Thus,
organizations rarely charge anyone with
overall responsibility for energy costs
and eciency. In businesses, energy
is often the domain of procurement
ocers who seek the best deals and
contracts but aren’t looking at overall
energy use and eciency.
However, an increasing number of
organizations are moving beyond ad hoc
eorts to address their energy-related
concerns. They are developing business
resilience plans and energy procurement
strategies and are also turning to on-site
power generation. Approximately
one-third of organizations generate
their own power. These entities do so
to address precisely the top concerns
about energy sustainability—reducing
energy costs and increasing operational
resiliency. FIGURE 4
Solar is a common source of on-site
generated electricity. According to
the 2016 annual Solar Means Business
rankings of U.S. companies’ solar energy
use, retailers, including Target and
Walmart, lead the list. But organizations
in other industries are also turning to the
sun to achieve energy independence.
The Campbell Soup Company is a case
in point. It powers many of its industrial
facilities through on-site generated solar
power. And now, the company is using
solar power generated on-site to power
its corporate headquarters in Camden,
New Jersey. “Generating power on-site
lets us plan and drive more resiliency
in the system,” says vice president,
corporate responsibility and chief
sustainability ocer, Dave Stangis.
“It also helps the community, since we
are able to sell unused electricity back to
the utility, which helps everyone make
more ecient use of energy.”
FIGURE 4
DRIVERS OF ON-SITE POWER GENERATION
Respondents citing each of the following
Reducing energy costs
Increasing operating resiliency
Reducing carbon emissions
Selling excess power to the grid
Other
Don’t know
71%
50%
48%
31%
15%
11%
SOURCE: HARVARD BUSINESS REVIEW ANALYTIC SERVICES SURVEY,
APRIL 2017
FIGURE 3
WHAT BUSINESSES ARE DOING ABOUT ENERGY SUSTAINABILITY
Respondents indicating that their organizations are taking each of the following actions
Improving energy efficiency in facilities
Working with supply chain partners to increase clean energy use and/or energy efficiency
Developing new energy-efficient products and/or product features
Implementing new manufacturing processes
Changing distribution and/or logistics to reduce carbon emissions
Making business resiliency plans
None of the above
80%
39%
33%
31%
28%
28%
10%
SOURCE: HARVARD BUSINESS REVIEW ANALYTIC SERVICES SURVEY,
APRIL 2017