From Kate:
It’s often not until February that business really kicks off for the year in Australia – so now is the time to review, refine and reinvigorate your strategic focus.
And it’s a good time to do so. The United Nations’ mission of the Sustainable Development Goals provides an important focus for all of us: individuals, organisations and our communities. For the next 15 years our countries are committed to working on 17 priority areas, ranging from zero hunger, to climate action, to sustainable cities and communities, and everything in between.
Yes, it’s true that the Millenium Goals were unsuccessful – but as we know, in business, we often don’t succeed on the first try. We need to get back up and try again, particularly when it is something as important as this.
Without all business committing to significant involvement there will be strong likelihood of a repeated failure. We all have the potential to provide solution-based approaches to these significant global challenges. It’s about cooperation and collaboration rather than competition. This is what is required of us and where we need to go.
The good news is that this is already happening. At GECA, our core business sits very clearly with goal 12 (responsible consumption and production), so in some ways, we have it “easy”.
But there is an opportunity for us to have an impact in additional ways. Through our strategic direction, we are actively working on Goal 9 (industry, innovation and infrastructure) and Goal 11 (sustainable cities and communities).
Let’s not think of linear one, three or five-year strategies, but let’s start with a 100 year plan and work backwards. To kick off the next 15 years I encourage you to explore which goals fit neatly into your organisational strategy today, which ones can you take leadership of, and where you can connect with others and support in followership.
Which goals do you have strategic alignment with? Which ones could you take on in a secondary capacity, and which ones could offer you new business opportunities?
Join us in becoming a collaborative force for a harmonised, sustainable and successful future.
