“Although I lobbied the C-suite and others on sustainability as a source of enterprise value, it was never my day job. I was simply the corporate curmudgeon who was incautiously relentless in advocating for sustainability.”
This issue of the GCI newsletter features Fred Mason, GCI Board Member and experienced international executive supporting sustainability with expertise, insight and passion.
How did you become interested in sustainability?
My corporate career was with a Fortune 100 multinational that is the leading manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, engines, turbines, and locomotives. In the mid-‘90s, I was working in our European headquarters. My group and I were accountable, among other things, for strategy and planning for the region. The UN had developed the concept of sustainable development. Given that our corporation manufactured products that were at the heart of development, I became convinced that we should be able to create shareholder value by providing products and services that enabled our customers to do their work more sustainably.
Although I lobbied the C-suite and others on sustainability as a source of enterprise value, it was never my day job. I was simply the corporate curmudgeon who was incautiously relentless in advocating for sustainability.