Episode highlights 

iLOQ’s technology is created with sustainability in mind. Although the starting point is so good, there are surely areas that need work. What did you tackle first when you started in the position two years ago?

At first, it was important to understand the company’s sustainability story and then prioritize what to tackle. iLOQ has done a great job with its own emissions, having already reduced them to zero, but there is still work to be done in the supply chain. We use metals in our products that are significant environmental pollutants on a global scale. We also need to investigate whether there are alternatives with lower emissions for the materials used in our products.

Brandkind has been involved in creating iLOQ’s ESG concept and annual reporting. Is it still possible to stand out as a sustainable brand?

Yes, it is. I think of companies as glass houses. Some people walk by quickly and only catch a glimpse, others delve deeper and get to know the company, and some hear a message from an employee or a family member. It’s important that the messages about how the company is perceived are in harmony so that the company’s sustainability story is credible. We hope that iLOQ resonates in areas such as emission-free operations, circular economy, recyclability, and staff awareness such as  diversity.

How have sustainability messages been implemented in your company? Does every employee know the company’s sustainability principles?

Sustainability can’t be credibly slapped onto a company’s operations, which is why our communications and storytelling must start from the strategy. Sustainability is integrated into all our messages. Of course, we also have the traditional education perspective, meaning an electronic ESG-training program for new employees during orientation and then regular repetition of trainings. Continuous internal communication about sustainability is important.

For many companies, EU sustainability reporting is just coming into effect. Many are still considering how to communicate about sustainability. What advice would you give?

Sustainability must genuinely start from the leadership. If the leadership does not understand what sustainability means for the company, how to approach it, and how important it is, success will be difficult to achieve. I would always appoint a appoint a person who manages sustainability topics in the company because the work is quite extensive. 

Start early. More EU directives are coming, and legislation and reporting obligations are increasing even for smaller companies. You need to build a high-quality, repeatable process in the coming years. It’s worth engaging the entire organization, but the process must have centralized resources for collecting data and ensuring quality. This requires a lot of resources, but if the whole organization is not committed, implementing sustainability work becomes very labor-intensive. 

I would also like to emphasize the understanding of double materiality. You need to assess what the external risks are and how they can affect your sustainability work or the success of the company.

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