Sustainability is rising to the top of the global agenda as regulations are evolving and investors, customers, and talent demand more transparency from companies on the topic. Sixty-two percent of respondents to a global survey by Cytiva entitled, “Sustainability: A key differentiator as biopharma faces momentum challenges,” which identifies sustainability as their number one priority over the next five years.
The findings also show that biopharma leaders recognize why they need to decarbonize, and while progress is good in some areas, companies struggle to make and measure progress. More than 800 pharma and biopharma professionals were surveyed on the benefits of meeting sustainability targets along with the risks of not clearly measuring progress on those targets. The research report includes insights from executives in 18 countries.
Highlights
- 63% of respondents see sustainability as imperative to differentiation and business growth.
- Over the past 12 months, more than half of sustainability leaders who participated in the Review say their companies have experienced increases in revenue (55%), profit (57%), share price (56%), brand reputation (58%), and their ability to attract talent (54%).
- However, more than three-quarters (76%) of companies cannot accurately measure sustainability return on investment (ROI).
- Almost two-thirds (64%) believe that poor sustainability performance puts their business at critical risk.
- Collaboration with stakeholders across the value chain is required to move the needle in mitigating climate change.
“We performed this research for several reasons. One, it is our responsibility to meet sustainability targets to protect the planet while supporting our customers as they discover and develop advanced therapies. Two, we want to drive a conversation around innovation and strategy on sustainability,” said Emmanuel Abate, president, genomic medicine, and head of sustainability and corporate responsibility at Cytiva. “These findings highlight where we as an industry must collaborate and push for better progress and prove the benefits of delivering on sustainability targets to employees, customers, and investors, both current and future.”
Accurately measuring sustainability progress emerged as a challenge. Technology was acknowledged as a tool with great potential but must be accompanied by skills and education.
Three action points for the industry
1) Place sustainability at the top of the corporate agenda and communicate this both internally and externally.
2) Focus on measuring emissions, moving away from spend-based methods by investing in technology and encouraging transparency with suppliers.
3) Collaborate with value chain partners to establish shared sustainability strategies and achievable goals.
You can read the full report at Biopharma Sustainability | Cytiva (cytivalifesciences.com)
