1、Balancing sustainability and profitability How businesses can protect people,planet,and the bottom lineIBM Institute for Business Value|Research Brief2IBM Institute for Business ValueBalancing sustainability and profitabilityForging a sustainable futureOn a rapidly warming planet,companies across se

2、ctors have transformed their business models to forge a sustainable futureone that protects people,planet,and profits.In the race to reduce emissions,consumption,and waste,everything is on the table.Supply chains are being recalibrated.Source materials are evolving.Travel requests are carefully scru

3、tinized.But companies cant do it alone.Consumers also play an important part.What theyre willing to do defines,in part,how far businesses can go.And while consumers have said they want companies to be stewards for changeand that theyre willing to commit significant personal resources to protect the

4、planetthere has historically been a disconnect between their aspirations and their actions.1 However,the pandemic may have turned the tide.Last year,the IBM Institute for Business Value(IBV)found that 93%of global respondents said COVID-19 had influenced their views on sustainability.2 And over the

5、past year,this trend has intensified.Our February 2022 survey of 16,000 global consumers in 10 major economies found that more than half(51%)of respondents say environmental sustainability is more important to them today than it was 12 months ago(see Methodology on page 20).Todays executives walk a

6、tightrope,balancing the long-term imperative to protect the planet with the immediate need to preserve the bottom line.In a landscape defined by chaos and disruption,they must hedge against the future costs of inaction while remaining economically viable today.IntroductionHomeShoppingInvestingEmploy