Building a sustainability strategy into the business

Purpose This paper aims to present a case study of how a global consumer company, with over 300 brands sold in 180 countries, and 138,000 employees, is building sustainability into the rhythm of its business. This goes beyond social investment programs, addressing sustainability in product design, manufacturing operations, employee engagement and stakeholder partnerships. Design/methodology/approach The paper describes the process Procter ensuring that sustainability is not added work; eliminating trade‐offs between performance, value and sustainability; having a clear strategy and knowing “where to play”, and getting sustainability incorporated into the DNA of a company. Originality/value This paper provides a new and broad overview of how sustainability has been implemented in a global consumer goods company. It introduces the unifying concept of “no trade offs” for both consumer acceptance of sustainable products and sustainability investments for companies. The paper also highlights the challenges of engaging employees around the world to deliver a single coherent sustainability strategy.