Mindsets in Action

With the goal of examining the subject of sustainability through a new lens, uncovering how business organizations are reconciling their role in the world today and into the future— and what it will take to realize that future—Avastone Consulting, a partner of Integral Life and Integral Institute, drew upon an integral framework to conduct the Avastone Corporate Sustainability Study (ACSS).

The companies participating in the ACSS are global in scale, representing a diverse set of industry groups, including transportation, metals and mining, high technology, foods, pharmaceuticals, industrial and consumer products, textiles, and chemicals. Study data were delineated using a comparative framework that incorporates five stages (or “Gears”) of sustainability, with a top gear, or 5th Gear, extending further than other models. The 5th Gear activity required—and the current chasm in organizations’ attention to 5th Gear—is a significant finding that we believe is important to the future of sustainability. Leadership and the Corporate Sustainability Challenge synthesizes the information from the ACSS and related learning to discern what is required for organizations to activate and power up the gears of sustainability. It charts progress of the ten companies across the five gears, identifies the foundational patterns that underlie success, and brings to light the central challenge dynamic that must be addressed. The report also explores the untapped realm of leader mindsets, including the nature of their development and the correlation between leader mindsets and realization of complex sustainability goals.

Download the executive summary here or learn more at Avastone Consulting.