Article by MEUS
It is undeniable that one of the trends of the next decade is and is being sustainability.
Social awareness is increasingly focused on environmental problems, which makes consumers worry about purchasing products that have been created taking care of their impact on the planet.
In recent years, more and more new business models related to sustainability have begun to emerge, and not only that, but it is already one more component to add to any daily activity.
In the same way, more and more entrepreneurs decide to start a sustainable business, ensuring that the company not only remains in the market but that its growth is constant so that its ecological and sustainable ideas are transmitted from generation to generation, in a time when the advancement of technology can generate great opportunities.
In business and in the corporate world, this is particularly perceived in the attention and care that is taken with sustainability, integrating it throughout the production chain, from the supply of raw materials of sustainable origin to the production process, which seeks to be much more efficient energetically and less aggressive with the environment.
Some of the main trends expected for the next few years are:
- Circular supply chains: this implies an effort by companies to change the traditional approach to the waste they generate, taking responsibility for eliminating it by reintroducing it into the production process. An example of this trend is the gestures that we began to see by companies that offer discounts to their customers for bringing their own packaging for the product or for reusing old packaging to fill it again. Another model that many companies are adopting is even taking over the collection of used packaging, increasing convenience for the customer.
- Recycling of human resources: companies are currently beginning to consider the recovery of workers who have previously been part of the company, and with whom they were satisfied. This favours, on the one hand, the labour reintegration of older people who are close to retirement and favours the operation of the company thanks to the fact that the rehiring of a worker does not imply the same high cost of training for the company as integrating a completely unrelated worker to the same.
- Technology as a facilitator of sustainability: the support of technology to act as a facilitator at different levels, thus promoting sustainability. Its contribution to daily operations is particularly relevant, reducing activities that have a negative impact on the environment.
- Trust Economy: it is another of the fundamental pillars for the generation of sustainable business models. Circular business models and ethical and sustainable practices require a very high level of trust among all the members of the process so that the final product meets the growing demands of the consumer.
In addition, we cannot ignore the new reality we are facing derived from Covid-19, which has caused a boom in online businesses, also finding sustainable and profitable online business models, where they try to work in each of their areas under the most environmentally friendly option possible; whether in shipments, returns or product.