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The E.S.C. Approach of ITL Group: the button we should all press

Any company, whether large or small, rests its foundations on a set of projects, plans, investments, and, most of all, values.

It is in this context that ITL Group has decided to strengthen its foundations by referring to a new and solid system of values or, rather, an approach nicknamed E.S.C.

E.S.C. stands for Ethics, Sustainability, and Creativity.

On a computer keyboard, ESC is used to close dialogue boxes rather than exit applications. For ITL Group, the ESC key takes on a completely different meaning. It becomes an expression of a new way of doing things.

By pressing this button, ITL Group wants to escape mediocrity and the status quo, to start thinking outside the box, to create a better world.

But this is not enough! Change is only possible with the help and commitment of each and every one of us. In order for our planet, our ‘home’, to withstand disasters, storms, and blizzards, we must join forces to strengthen its foundations.

Each one of us has the power to make the difference and has the opportunity to press this button.

In everyday life, ethics, sustainability, and creativity are certainly heard and resented concepts.

But are we really aware and masters of these terms?

The letter “E” stands for Ethics

Let us start with a simple definition.

People are ethical if they recognise the difference between right and wrong and constantly strive to set an example of good behaviour. In the work environment, behaviour is ethical if you apply the principles of honesty and fairness towards colleagues, business partners, and customers.

Being fair and honest is no mean feat, especially given the temptations and constant pressures from the outside world.

Why should a company be ethical and moral?

Brian Hill distinguishes four main benefits of ethical business behaviour:

  • Strengthening the bond with customers
  • Building a corporate reputation
  • Avoiding legal problems
  • Attracting and retaining talented employees.

As far as customer trust is concerned, it takes years to gain it and seconds to lose it. Reputation is everything for a company, especially if, in addition to maintaining relations with its customers, it seeks to win new ones. An unethical reputation hurts your chances of gaining new customers, especially in this age where news and information travel at the speed of light and remain online.

It is not uncommon to hear of companies that have not fully complied with environmental regulations or labour laws, ignored worker safety risks or used substandard materials in their products. These choices have had consequences, both economic and non-economic.

Finally, when it comes to human resources, companies that are fair and ethical in their dealings with employees are more likely to retain the most talented and valuable people.

Being ethical seems more than beneficial. There are many realities that have shown that combining ethics and profits is possible.

This is the case of Illy, an Italian company known for its tasty coffee. This is according to the World’s Most Ethical Companies 2021 ranking conducted by the Ethisphere Institute, a global leader in the definition and development of corporate ethical standards. According to Illycaffè president Andrea Illy, “Consolidating and promoting ethics and sound values is essential to generating positive change in our society, as is recognising the essential role of the private sector in creating a world that is socially, economically and environmentally more sustainable, now and for generations to come.” The company has thus decided to intervene in a future that seemed already written with multiple ethical projects. For example, by funding the Seeds for Progress Foundation, it supported the construction of new rural schools in Nicaragua. In 2019, it financed the purchase of a coffee plantation in Rwanda to be used as a Farm Field School for a cooperative of 40 women coffee producers.

An example of a company that has decided to base its operations on the concept of giving: TOMS. Since 2006, the TOMS shoe division has donated more than 60 million pairs of shoes to needy children around the world. TOMS’ eyewear division has donated more than 400,000 pairs of glasses to visually impaired people who do not have access to eye care. The company has further diversified its operations to include clean water initiatives through its coffee business, and its line of bags has helped support projects to expand access to birthing kits for expectant mothers in developing countries, as well as training for birth attendants. To date, TOMS has helped more than 25,000 women deliver their babies safely.

They have made an ethical approach not only a distinguishing feature but also a lever to make the difference.

The letter “S” stands for Sustainability

Today, sustainability is an increasingly important issue for many people. Climate change continues to affect our lives and the fate of all other species on the planet. Sustainable business practices are becoming a real imperative.

What does it mean to be sustainable? Essentially, it is about operating without negatively impacting the environment. In other words, a ‘green’ company functions by pursuing not only its own interest but also that of the local and global environment, thus supporting the entire community and economy that depend on a healthy planet. A company can be considered sustainable if it considers not only profits but also its impact on society and the environment.

Nowadays, more and more companies are investing money and time in green projects.
The following are examples of companies that have initiated interesting sustainable projects.

Merge4 has surprised customers all over the world with a new and innovative business idea: producing colourful and imaginative bamboo socks. Socks have become a real opportunity for change. By questioning knowledge and production traditions, the company has managed to evolve, recognising the potential in new, sustainable and recyclable materials.

Another example is given by The Good Tee. To reduce waste and divert fabrics from landfills, the company uses organic cotton fabric recovered from stocks of cancelled orders. In addition, the certified organic cotton is dyed with ecological dyes that make it breathable and safer for the skin and the planet in general.

Many Italian companies have also initiated various sustainable projects.

Barilla, in collaboration with Favini, has launched the “CartaCrusca” project, with the aim of recovering bran to produce paper.

Lavazza, in addition to designing a biodegradable capsule, has invested in a project to cultivate mushrooms from coffee grounds.

Today, even the smallest companies are trying to make a difference. The Circle, for example, is a farm that produces food in an absolutely innovative and sustainable way thanks to aquaponics technology, without producing any kind of waste or pollution. Vegetable production has been combined with fish breeding: feeding and breathing the fish in the tank produces ammonia and organic waste that is transformed into fertiliser for the plants.

How did these companies turn an obstacle into an opportunity? Is it only the big companies that have the chance to change? Does it just take a lot of money or is there more to it?

The Boston Consulting Group proposes four steps for sustainable business model innovation for companies of all types.

  1. Expand the “corporate canvas“: The first step is to develop a rich understanding of the broader ecosystem of stakeholders in which the company operates and the environmental and social issues and trends that could affect this ecosystem. In this way, vulnerabilities and opportunities can be identified.
  2. Invest in a resilient business model: At this stage, it is necessary to transform the business model or, even, imagine a completely new one, so as to be able to seize the cited opportunities. There are two key words, innovate and renew, trying to circumvent current constraints, break compromises, exploit technological advances and integrate activities that were previously kept separate.
  3. Exploiting value levers and benefits: In the third phase of the cycle, the company must test and refine ideas or new business concepts to ensure that they deliver the expected environmental and social benefits, so that the benefits translate into added value and competitive advantage.
  4. Taking the initiative: The full potential value of sustainable business model innovation is only achieved when the new business model is applied: involving people in the company, across the supply chain, in the company’s networks and its ecosystems to expand impact and benefit.

Benefits for sustainable companies

Sustainability, like ethics, not only benefits society and the planet, it also brings multiple advantages to businesses. Research has shown that sustainability has real benefits for businesses when it is conscientiously integrated into business operations. Among the most cited benefits are:

  • Improved brand image with subsequent acquisition of a competitive advantage
  • Increased productivity and reduced costs
  • Increased ability to comply with laws and regulations
  • Reduction of waste
  • Greater attractiveness to employees and investors
  • Greater satisfaction of the large group of stakeholders.

The letter “C” stands for Creativity

With the uncertainty of these times, as well as for the future, creativity becomes more important than ever. Having a creative mindset towards your business or the company you work for can make the difference between success and failure in these volatile times. Although they are typically practical people, entrepreneurs are pushed to think outside the box.

Creativity is the ability to produce new and original ideas, linking concepts in unique and alternative ways to create different solutions. Creative people are able to identify an unaddressed problem and then find a solution. This ability is necessary for a business that wants to grow.

10 statistics on how creativity can change the way we do business

  1. The creative industries boast faster job growth and slower job losses than other sectors of the economy.
  2. 75% of people think they are not living up to their creative potential.
  3. 6 out of 10 people think that being creative is valuable to their country’s economy.
  4. People reported increasing pressure to be productive rather than creative at work. In the US and UK, 80% of people felt this way, while the number rose to 85% in France.
  5. People spend more than 50% of their time online looking at content.
  6. Shoppers go through about 57% of the buying process themselves before talking to a salesperson.
  7. When CEOs were asked: “What is the skill you value most in your people?”, they answered creativity, the ability to solve problems, find new solutions and use their brains to figure things out.
  8. Some 60% of CEOs surveyed cited creativity as the most important leadership quality, compared to 52% for integrity and 35% for global thinking.
  9. New research is the content type most requested by LinkedIn users (77%), followed by breaking news (68%) and case studies (55%).
  10. The average attention span of consumers is 8 seconds, 1 second less than a goldfish.

In general, these ten points could be summarised by saying that creativity allows you to anticipate the future in order to gain a competitive advantage and outperform your competitors.

Creativity improves the financial performance

A recent study by McKinsey has shown that companies that are leaders in terms of creativity stand out in terms of financial performance. Specifically:

  • 67% had above-average organic revenue growth.
  • 70% reported an above-average total return to shareholders.
  • 74% reported above-average net enterprise value, better known as EBITDA.

Ideas that might seem like nonsense to many become opportunities for profitability for many others.

Swiss farmer Paul Wyler has been renting cows to local restaurants for 20 years. Recently, he has also decided to advertise this particular service on the Internet, gathering requests from countries as far afield as Japan, South Africa and the United States.

Speaking of foreign languages, an Irish entrepreneur, Benny Lewis, has found a way to learn a new language in three months. So, Lewis launched a series of books – ‘Language Hacking’ – dedicated to conversation in French, Spanish, German and Italian. With sections on survival phrases, slang and sentence fillers, the books embody his practical approach. “Language learning usually relies on the study of grammar and vocabulary tables,” says Lewis. “Language hacking, on the other hand, gets you talking from day one. You take a handful of words and extract as many as you can.”

Another example comes from the Greek company Parkgene. Like many others, it started out as a parking reservation service. Now it has switched to a peer-to-peer model, which means that people can rent their parking spaces directly to each other.

Recalling more well-known brands, Nike experiments daily with products, materials and promotional techniques. Content marketing has decided to innovate, with increasingly engaging promotional and communication techniques. In 2018, for the launch of its Epic React shoes, Nike collaborated with production company Unit9 to create Reactland – the ultimate immersive experience. This is a great example of creative content marketing, as it uses an augmented reality video game where players can literally try on the Epic React. The result was that 48% of players bought the shoes.

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