Businesses are increasingly recognizing their own need to get involved in the fight against climate change — and quite often, strategic partnerships are proving key to making these goals become an attainable reality.
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00:00Mitigating climate change should become a key priority for any business.
00:09And with strategic and targeted partnerships, there are countless ways that can make a difference.
00:14Let's look at one way, which is sharing resources.
00:18There are many startups that are exclusively focused on solving challenges related to climate
00:23change.
00:24But while they may have innovative ideas, they often lack the resources to turn them
00:29into reality.
00:30Enter one of the most common types of strategic business partnerships that is currently seen
00:35on a global scale—capital investments that are specifically focused on green initiatives.
00:42Of course, providing funding to green-focused startups isn't the only way that business
00:47partnerships can share resources in the fight against climate change.
00:51But, providing capital investment to green companies has proven to be a valuable partnership
00:56solution for fast-tracking some of the most innovative and impactful ideas.
01:02And that ensures that these startups can make a more meaningful difference much sooner.
01:09Cross-sector partnerships have also proven to be a significant driver in climate-focused
01:13partnerships.
01:15Businesses don't necessarily have to limit their partnerships to working with other businesses.
01:20Non-profits and even government organizations can also serve as valuable partners in driving
01:25climate change initiatives.
01:27A report from the World Economic Forum shows that NGOs and non-profits can be valuable
01:33partners in helping to identify the most urgent environmental issues—whether on a regional
01:39or global scale.
01:41Partnerships focused on climate change don't always need to be internally focused either.
01:46Instead, businesses can fill a valuable role by making clean solutions more accessible
01:52and improving awareness of current challenges.
01:55Now my favorite tip is taking a vested approach to partnerships.
02:00Despite the powerful potential of climate-focused partnerships, many struggle.
02:05A McKenzie report found that 72% of startups were dissatisfied with their corporate partnerships.
02:11While there are many differences that can create friction, adopting a vested approach
02:16can ensure true alignment and success.
02:19In my own case study describing the vested partnership between BP and JLL, one of the
02:24most important aspects was how the partners came together and jointly defined a shared
02:29vision and desired outcomes.
02:32With their shared vision and desired outcomes in hand, they jointly looked at metrics and
02:36assigned metrics to each of the desired outcomes, in particular the ones around sustainability.
02:43Importantly, the aspects focused on what needed to be accomplished rather than how JLL as
02:50a supplier would accomplish the work.
02:53What mattered most was that the partnership would be able to achieve its desired outcomes
02:57without creating an environment that would lead to micromanagement.
03:01Because the two partners spent time building the relationship and creating a plan using
03:06the vested principles, they were fully aligned before and during the transition period as
03:12the partnership was implemented to lead significant progress towards their sustainability goals.
03:19The bottom line, it is your bottom line.
03:22Strong partnerships with an emphasis on collaboration can go a long way in helping businesses involved
03:27improve their impact on the environment.
03:30As more of these partnerships form, the potential positive influence of the business world can
03:36increase exponentially, and that makes me excited.
03:42Microsoft Mechanics
03:44www.microsoft.com