--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If sustainability is going to take hold…" description: "\"If sustainability is going to take hold in the corporate sector in a big way - and we need it to - it will be when it produces big profits and faster g..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/105/paul-gilding-44459_abstract_if-sustainability-is-going-to-take-hold_2871114.png" --- # If sustainability is going to take hold in the corporate… ![“If sustainability is going to take hold in the corporate sector in a big way - and we need it to - it will be when it produces big profits and faster growth. It won't happen because of an optional executive commitment to an abstract concept. It will happen because sustainability is a great…” quote by Paul Gilding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/105/paul-gilding-44459_abstract_if-sustainability-is-going-to-take-hold_2871114.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/105/paul-gilding-44459_abstract_if-sustainability-is-going-to-take-hold_2871114.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/105/paul-gilding-44459_abstract_if-sustainability-is-going-to-take-hold_2871114.png) > “If sustainability is going to take hold in the corporate sector in a big way - and we need it to - it will be when it produces big profits and faster growth. It won't happen because of an optional executive commitment to an abstract concept. It will happen because sustainability is a great business strategy. And it is” [Paul Gilding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-gilding/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Sustainability will be adopted when it clearly drives profit and growth, not just as a moral choice. **In simple terms:** Profit drives sustainability adoption. Key Takeaway Link sustainability to profit. Themes business profitability sustainability strategy Mood analytical optimistic Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - corporate planning - product development - marketing campaigns - investment decisions Key Concepts economic incentives corporate responsibility Questions to Reflect On - Can profit and sustainability coexist without compromise? - What incentives truly change corporate behavior? A Different Perspective Profit motives may overlook environmental impact. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Abstract](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abstract/) [Bigs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bigs/) [Business](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/business/) [Business strategy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/business-strategy/) [Commitment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/commitment/) [Concepts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/concepts/) [Corporate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/corporate/) [Corporate Sector](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/corporate-sector-1262318/) [Economics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/economics/) [Environment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/environment/) [Executives](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/executives/) [Faster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/faster/) [Great business](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-business/) [Growth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/growth/) [Happen Sustainability](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happen-sustainability-3928716/) [Happens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happens/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Management](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/management/) [Needs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/needs/) [Optional](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/optional/) [Produce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/produce/) [Profit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/profit/) [Strategy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/strategy/) [Sustainability](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sustainability/) [Sustainability Going](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sustainability-going-3928714/) [Sustainability Great](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sustainability-great-3928715/) [Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/) ## Related quotes > [As more and more people wake up to the fact that further growth does not necessarily bring improvements in quality of life (and often…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathon-porritt/as-more-and-more-people-wake-up-to-the-fact-that-further-growth-does/) [Jonathon Porritt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathon-porritt/) > [I stayed back in Delhi for a year-and-a-half while I was working in the corporate sector. My office was in Qutab Institutional Area, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sayani-gupta/i-stayed-back-in-delhi-for-a-year-and-a-half-while-i-was-working-in/) [Sayani Gupta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sayani-gupta/) > [The corporate sector in my view is the most important since it is actively involved in the shaping of our life on the planet.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yossi-ghinsberg/the-corporate-sector-in-my-view-is-the-most-important-since-it-is/) [Yossi Ghinsberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yossi-ghinsberg/) > [What I see in the corporate sector is very clearly an issue of a major shortfall in the issue of, what some people call…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-greenspan/what-i-see-in-the-corporate-sector-is-very-clearly-an-issue-of-a/) [Alan Greenspan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-greenspan/) > [Everyone knows that our current system is kind of like legalized prostitution. The corporate sector completely controls the civic sector.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-coyote/everyone-knows-that-our-current-system-is-kind-of-like-legalized/) [Peter Coyote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-coyote/) > [The difference between both is that social entrepreneurship has a much more financial transparency. There is no financial viability and that is where a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ramon-magsaysay/the-difference-between-both-is-that-social-entrepreneurship-has-a/) [Ramon Magsaysay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ramon-magsaysay/) > [The corporate sector per se is bottom-line oriented. It can be very corrupt and it is not very principled. That is why I don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-robinson/the-corporate-sector-per-se-is-bottom-line-oriented-it-can-be-very/) [Mary Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-robinson/) > [The existence of glass ceilings in the corporate sector has been extensively researched and documented and there is no need to reiterate the fact.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sucheta-dalal/the-existence-of-glass-ceilings-in-the-corporate-sector-has-been/) [Sucheta Dalal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sucheta-dalal/) > [The whole sector of public dialogue has been totally contaminated, deliberately, by the corporate sector. The whole purpose is to sow confusion and doubt,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-suzuki/the-whole-sector-of-public-dialogue-has-been-totally-contaminated/) [David Suzuki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-suzuki/) > [“Organizational development is part of the digital strategy, and digital strategy equals to business strategy with digital new normal.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pearl-zhu/organizational-development-is-part-of-the-digital-strategy-and/) [Pearl Zhu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-zhu/) > [As Ive progressed in my career, Ive come to appreciate -- and really value -- the other attributes that define a companys success beyond…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-burns/as-ive-progressed-in-my-career-ive-come-to-appreciate-and-really/) [Ursula Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-burns/) > [The IT organization can't drive or lead a digital transformation. It has to come from the business and the business strategy, because they're fundamental…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-dell/the-it-organization-can-t-drive-or-lead-a-digital-transformation-it/) [Michael Dell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-dell/) > [“The corporate board oversees the corporate strategy, and the business strategy is underpinned by business capabilities.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pearl-zhu/the-corporate-board-oversees-the-corporate-strategy-and-the-business/) [Pearl Zhu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-zhu/) > [I generally disagree with most of the very high margin opportunities. Why? Because it's a business strategy tradeoff: the lower the margin you take,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vinod-khosla/i-generally-disagree-with-most-of-the-very-high-margin-opportunities/) [Vinod Khosla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vinod-khosla/) > [Alignment of business strategy and risk appetite should minimize the firm's exposure to large and unexpected losses. In addition, the firm's risk management capabilities…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerome-powell/alignment-of-business-strategy-and-risk-appetite-should-minimize-the/) [Jerome Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerome-powell/) ## More by Paul Gilding > [The four words that will define this century: The Earth is full.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-gilding/the-four-words-that-will-define-this-century-the-earth-is-full/) [Paul Gilding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-gilding/) > [If you want to change the world, change it through the market](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-gilding/if-you-want-to-change-the-world-change-it-through-the-market/) [Paul Gilding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-gilding/) > [Thanks to those pesky laws of physics, when things aren't sustainable, they stop.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-gilding/thanks-to-those-pesky-laws-of-physics-when-things-aren-t-sustainable/) [Paul Gilding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-gilding/) > [We can choose this moment of crisis to ask and answer the big questions of society's evolution — like, what do we want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-gilding/we-can-choose-this-moment-of-crisis-to-ask-and-answer-the-big/) [Paul Gilding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-gilding/) > [The Earth doesn't care what we need; Mother Nature doesn't negotiate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-gilding/the-earth-doesn-t-care-what-we-need-mother-nature-doesn-t-negotiate/) [Paul Gilding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-gilding/) > [Our system - of debt-fueled economic growth, of ineffective democracy, of overloading planet Earth - is eating itself alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-gilding/our-system-of-debt-fueled-economic-growth-of-ineffective-democracy-of/) [Paul Gilding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-gilding/) > [It takes a good crisis to get us going. When we feel fear and we fear loss we are capable of quite extraordinary things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-gilding/it-takes-a-good-crisis-to-get-us-going-when-we-feel-fear-and-we-fear/) [Paul Gilding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-gilding/) > [When you are surrounded by something so big that requires you to change everything about the way you think and see the world, then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-gilding/when-you-are-surrounded-by-something-so-big-that-requires-you-to/) [Paul Gilding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-gilding/) [Explore all 9 Paul Gilding quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-gilding/) ## More Abstract quotes > [Love is like that, fragile and light. No wonder it rests upon our hearts in intangible moments, bids us follow fleeting thoughts and ideas…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/love-is-like-that-fragile-and-light-no-wonder-it-rests-upon-our/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Wisdom is the abstract of the past, but beauty is the promise of the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/wisdom-is-the-abstract-of-the-past-but-beauty-is-the-promise-of-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Where human eyes have never seen, where human beings have never been, I build a world of abstract dreams, and I wait for you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sun-ra/where-human-eyes-have-never-seen-where-human-beings-have-never-been-i/) [Sun Ra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sun-ra/) > [A little too abstract, a little too wise, It is time for us to kiss the earth again, It is time to let the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robinson-jeffers/a-little-too-abstract-a-little-too-wise-it-is-time-for-us-to-kiss-the/) [Robinson Jeffers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robinson-jeffers/) > [“Happy is very abstract, you can't touch it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julius-veal/happy-is-very-abstract-you-can-t-touch-it/) [Julius Veal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julius-veal/) > [Abstract Expressionism was invented by New York drunks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joni-mitchell/abstract-expressionism-was-invented-by-new-york-drunks/) [Joni Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joni-mitchell/) > [The more horrible this world (as today, for instance), the more abstract our art, whereas a happy world brings forth an art of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-klee/the-more-horrible-this-world-as-today-for-instance-the-more-abstract/) [Paul Klee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-klee/) > [Describing comic sensibility is near impossible. It's sort of an abstract silliness, that sometimes the joke isn't the star.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dana-carvey/describing-comic-sensibility-is-near-impossible-it-s-sort-of-an/) [Dana Carvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dana-carvey/) > [For people of color - especially African Americans - the idea that racist cops might frame members of their community is no abstract notion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-wise/for-people-of-color-especially-african-americans-the-idea-that-racist/) [Tim Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-wise/) > [The word of the Lord never comes to us as an opinion, no attempt is made to support it by argument, it comes as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-w-ivins/the-word-of-the-lord-never-comes-to-us-as-an-opinion-no-attempt-is/) [Anthony W. Ivins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-w-ivins/) > [A mobile is an abstract sculpture made chiefly out of sheet metal, steel rods, wire and wood. Some or all of these elements move,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-calder/a-mobile-is-an-abstract-sculpture-made-chiefly-out-of-sheet-metal/) [Alexander Calder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-calder/) > [I'm this superphilosophical kind of person. Stuck in a prison of abstract ideas and overpowering emotions, I have this personality that makes it really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natsuo-kirino/i-m-this-superphilosophical-kind-of-person-stuck-in-a-prison-of/) [Natsuo Kirino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natsuo-kirino/) > [Future lawyers should be more aware that law is not a system of abstract logic, but the web of arrangements, rooted in history but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-frankfurter/future-lawyers-should-be-more-aware-that-law-is-not-a-system-of/) [Felix Frankfurter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-frankfurter/) > [The trouble is that when you read criticisms about the other films that I've made you get the impression that they're all about themes,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-haneke/the-trouble-is-that-when-you-read-criticisms-about-the-other-films/) [Michael Haneke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-haneke/) > [Painting is... a richer language than words... Painting operates through signs which are not abstract and incorporeal like words. The signs of painting are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-dubuffet/painting-is-a-richer-language-than-words-painting-operates-through/) [Jean Dubuffet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-dubuffet/) [Browse all 1,403 Abstract quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abstract/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If sustainability is going to take hold in the corporate sector in a big way - and we need it to - it will be when it produces big profits and faster growth. It won't happen because of an optional executive commitment to an abstract concept. It will happen because sustainability is a great business strategy. And it is", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Paul Gilding" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-gilding/if-sustainability-is-going-to-take-hold-in-the-corporate-sector-in-a/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Abstract" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-gilding/if-sustainability-is-going-to-take-hold-in-the-corporate-sector-in-a/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/105/paul-gilding-44459_abstract_if-sustainability-is-going-to-take-hold_2871114.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/105/paul-gilding-44459_abstract_if-sustainability-is-going-to-take-hold_2871114.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/105/paul-gilding-44459_abstract_if-sustainability-is-going-to-take-hold_2871114.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If sustainability is going to take hold in the corporate sector in a big way - and we need it to - it will…” — Paul Gilding", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Paul Gilding", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-gilding/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "If sustainability is going to take...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-gilding/if-sustainability-is-going-to-take-hold-in-the-corporate-sector-in-a/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-gilding/if-sustainability-is-going-to-take-hold-in-the-corporate-sector-in-a/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```