Magic 8 Ball: A Tool for Sustainability Risk?

Blog by Julie Urlaub, Founder and Managing Partner at Taiga Company
Aug 29, 2011 12:45 PM ET

Taiga Company blog by Julie Urlaub, Founder and Managing Partner at Taiga Compa…

The mystical qualities of the Magic 8 ball captured our fascinations as children. Could it really predict the future? As adults, we realize it's limited in its powers, but yet, the idea of glancing into the future, finding answers to questions, and gaining security in knowingness still grips us.  In business, that's why we have business plans, models, schedules and risk analysis.  But it's interesting to question if these traditional approaches are serving us? Much like the Magic 8 ball, can they adequately foresee sustainability risk?   Within our sustainability consulting, it is not uncommon to interface with business leaders who are unaware of the potential cost and business risk they may be incurring though misunderstanding or inactivity related to business sustainability.   The post, Suppliers in the Hot Seat: Are you One of Them? addresses the extended responsibilities of water, carbon, environment management to suppliers in larger supply chains.    While many organizations recognize the ‘softer’ value of sustainability generated by some of the more well known leading companies, few fail to acknowledge the risk of their own inactivity to the bottom line: click here to read what the risks are.   

Home to one third of the earth's trees, the Taiga is the largest land-based biosphere and encircles the globe. Its immense oxygen production literally changes the atmosphere and refreshes the planet. It is this continuous renewal that has shaped Taiga Company's vision to drive similar change in the business world. Taiga Company seeks to be the "oxygen for your business".