One of the main trends I identified in my new book The Green Executive is the shift from ‘green’ being the exception to it becoming the rule. Examples include:

• Redesigning mainstream products to be green as opposed to launching a green range (which is so 1990s);

• The killing off of products incompatible with sustainability objectives;

• Environmental objectives put into all managers’ job descriptions rather than being the sole responsibility of the environmental manager;

• A shift in emphasis of the role of green teams from delivering sustainability to facilitating sustainable behaviour in others;

• The integration of sustainability strategies into business strategies (and vice versa);

• Rebuilding supply chains to deliver sustainable goods and services, de-listing suppliers who don’t make the grade;

• Showing leadership amongst peers, disassociating themselves from organisations with a regressive attitude to the environment and even calling for stricter environmental legislation.

The implication of this shift is that directors and senior managers must have a good grasp of sustainability issues, how they impact on the core business and the range of solutions available. Which is why I wrote the book!