Interfacing With Change
This story is presented by Transitions Film Festival.
As a supporting partner of Transitions Film Festival, we sat down with Director of Beyond Zero, Nathan Havey, to discuss how business can play a leading role in reversing climate change.
Beyond Zero follows pioneering CEO of Interface, Ray Anderson, as he reinvents what it means to run a business. One of the most globally recognised ethical organisations, Interface has become an iconic example of how a business can thrive after reinventing itself as a force for good.
Beyond Zero celebrates a life of impact and offers an inspirational roadmap for how businesses can play a leading role in reversing climate change. Director Nathan Havey took the time to discuss the true impact of Ray Anderson’s work.
What inspired the making of this film?
The Interface story is uniquely powerful and tragically little-known. Ray Anderson’s epiphany, for using business for good, has compelled many others to do the same including business leaders like Richard Branson (Virgin), Paul Polman (Unilever), and Lee Scott (Walmart).
Through his speaking, Ray inspired countless others to adopt the basic premise that business transforming itself must be a major part of the solution to climate change. In working on the film I lost count of how many people I met, and continue to meet, on whom Ray left an indelible mark.
It isn't just Ray though.
Since his passing in 2011, Interface continues to inspire and even train other companies and business leaders to find their way beyond zero to positive environmental impact. Through Beyond Zero, I wanted to make this story more accessible and allow it to be more commonplace.
Ray had his 'awakening moment' after reading Paul Hawkins' quote. What was your 'awakening moment'?
My awakening moment happened in 2010 as I read about Ray in his book "Confessions of a Radical Industrialist". Ray was a pioneer, and since the evolution of his business, we have seen the rise of B-corps; the B-team; impact investors; and the rise of 'purpose' organizations all across the planet.
What did you learn about creating organisational change during filming?
Interface teaches us a number of critical lessons that can help companies transform to meet the ecological demands of our time:
- There is no inherent trade-off between ecological and financial performance;
- The leader can't just phone it in; there has to be deep personal alignment with the company purpose;
- To succeed, company leadership must understand that the financial performance of the company is essential, but it is ultimately in service of the purpose, not the other way around;
- The purpose must drive the strategy of every major company department and function. It cannot be siloed or exist on the side of the core business;
- The culture must empower employees at every level to engage in the purpose. To do so, it must care about the people in it as more than just their job functions;
- Change takes years, not quarters to achieve.
Has our understanding of climate change really shifted?
I think that there is much less, serious debate about the reality of climate change and the urgency of the situation. The major stumbling blocks now seem to be getting aligned on a specific set of actions that will return total greenhouse gases in the atmosphere to a sustainable level quickly.
Do you still feel that business, within the current economic system, can save us?
As a society, we are facing a fundamental trade-off choice. Should we continue to enjoy the fruits of 200 years of industrialization or do we return to a pre-industrial way of life so that future generations have a chance to meet their needs as well?
The Interface story shows us a third way that can allow humanity to resolve this fundamental trade-off. What makes Interface special is its ambition to go beyond zero and find ways not to mitigate harm, but to proactively innovate financially viable solutions that turn major problem areas into areas of profound benefit. The "current economic system" will work just fine, even perfectly, to deliver the transformation we seek. We just need to start accounting for social and ecological capital in addition to financial capital.
"Change takes years, not quarters to achieve."
"If a company with no roadmap for how to make progress can achieve what Interface has achieved, then every other company on Earth can – and must – do the same."
Why is Interface’s change an important statement to the rest of the world?
It proves that any company can reimagine itself to achieve sustainability. Interface was a global, public company in 1994 in one of the world's dirtiest industries. If a company with no roadmap for how to make progress can achieve what Interface has achieved, then every other company on Earth can – and must – do the same.
What are your plans for this film and what impact do you hope it will have?
We are seeking corporate sponsors to help us make this film and associated teaching resources available at no cost to reach current and aspiring business leaders in the world's top 20 economies for educational use.
It is already being used for internal corporate training on three continents and I believe it can be a powerful tool for companies – from the CEO to the new hire – to start the conversation for this critically important transformation.