Where are you on the road to net zero?

The number of large corporates setting net zero targets has ramped up significantly in recent years^[1]. The spotlight is now moving from target-setting to delivery, with the transparency and integrity of companies’ climate pledges being subject to scrutiny by the media and other commentators^[2].

“If we have a world in which major organisations only have a net zero target, but don’t actually set out how they’re going to get there, then there’s no accountability,” Jacques Morris, team leader at the Transition Plan Taskforce’s secretariat, told FT’s Moral Money.

The reality in many organisations is that the setting of climate pledges or net zero targets is a corporate function undertaken at C-Level, but making good on those targets has to happen at an operational level. And yet, many organisations report a disconnect between corporate targets and commitments and the translation of those into day-to-day operations and business planning.

Achieving net zero is such a complex proposition impacting most areas of an organisation’s operations that getting to grips with it is challenging. Whose responsibility is it? R&D, innovation, procurement, strategy, marketing, product management…all have roles. In fact it’s pretty much everyone’s responsibility and that’s what makes it so hard to embed into an organisation. If it’s everyone’s responsibility then there’s a chance it may be no-one’s.

In collaboration with the Chief Technology Officers (CTOs) of leading global corporates Science Group recently developed a PlayBook for Net Zero^[3] which outlines approaches and principles to help organisations, and specifically Innovation and R&D functions, to embed net zero into their core operations. The start of the process is to assess where your organisation is in terms of maturity in its net zero ambition. The following diagnostic tool helps you judge your progress towards net zero.

We invite you take part in a short survey which will help assess how mature your organisation is with regards to net zero. We will compile the results of the survey and will present the findings to everyone who participated in the coming weeks.

Click here to access the survey.

Thank you for taking part.

^[1] More than one-third (702) of world’s largest publicly traded companies now have net zero targets, up from one-fifth (417) in December 2020. NetZero Tracker Net Zero Stocktake 2022 | Net Zero Tracker

^[2] One such commentator is New Climate Institute which produces The Corporate Climate Responsibility Monitor in collaboration with Carbon Market Watch, which assesses the climate strategies of 25 major global companies. It critically analyses the extent to which they demonstrate corporate climate leadership.

^[3] The Net Zero playbook can be downloaded at Net Zero Playbook | Science Group Sustainability