Bob Langert: The business case for working with your toughest critics
બોબ લેન્ગર્ટ: તમારા સખત ટીકાકારો સાથે કામ કરવા માટેનો વ્યવસાય કેસ
Bob Langert consults, writes and speaks about corporate sustainability, showing how companies can successfully navigate and manage today’s controversial societal issues, become better corporate citizens and make their businesses stronger, more relevant and more profitable. Full bio
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infamous Styrofoam container?
કુખ્યાત સ્ટીરોફોમ કન્ટેનર?
it changed my company,
can be your best allies.
was the symbol of a garbage crisis.
were sending letters, blaming McDonald's,
millions of these at that time.
about environmentally friendly packaging,
and truck drivers.
to save this clamshell for the company
within McDonald's."
in the late '60s, early '70s,
in the United States.
with the protests, the sit-ins,
to question authority.
going to make a living doing this.
protest letters to McDonald's,
to make a difference.
to a partnership
of "sue the bastards."
about me and my team?
all I care about is the money.
to give us real-world solutions.
in our restaurants.
to dress a quarter-pounder,
two squirts of ketchup, one mustard,
go on to the next one,
He couldn't get it right all day long.
to understand our business.
were the holy grail for our business.
outside DC, we went to the back room.
experience at McDonald's
at McDonald's, all day long,
left with the food,
a lot of ideas that did work.
of them by ourselves,
from the white carry-out bag
bleaching chemicals,
the fiber is stronger,
our napkin by one inch.
by three million pounds a year.
is we changed that bright white napkin,
became gray and speckled.
late-night discussions,
waste reduction action plan.
the decade of the '90s,
300 million pounds of waste.
about that polystyrene clamshell,
તે પોલિસ્ટરીન ક્લેમશેલ વિશે,
the idea to work with critics.
on solutions that could work
ઉકેલો કે જે કામ કરી શકે છે
not within our direct control.
animals used for meat.
the biggest purchaser of meat
the most vociferous and vigilant critics
head of Animal Rights International,
about animal rights.
in New York City.
getting ready,
going to order my favorite,
and sausage and eggs.
to the pastries.
discussion to happen.
they asked good questions.
how working on animal welfare
they only make meat patties.
removed from our influence.
of our organizations,
a terrific recommendation.
then and now, on animal behavior.
and how they should react in facilities.
she just loves the animals,
the reality of the meat business.
to a slaughterhouse in my life,
have electric prods in their hands,
almost every animal in the facility.
she's jumping up and down,
this isn't right,
we could use plastic bags,
for natural behavior."
of implementing animal welfare.
two to five years.
it all got enforced.
suppliers lost business
to the entire industry.
that we're blamed for elsewhere?
that's their role.
Greenpeace campaigners
to the chairs and tables.
that they had just released,
is a key ingredient for chicken feed,
at the World Wildlife Fund,
the Greenpeace report was accurate.
next day, after that campaign,
Heathrow airport.
the first hour was shaky,
of trust in the room.
everything came together,
wanted to save the Amazon.
and who was from McDonald's.
on a trip through the Amazon,
on the Greenpeace boat.
of miles west of Manaus,
there's no roads,
rainforest destruction.
produced outstanding results.
other retailers and suppliers
clear-cutting practices
as a spectacular drop in deforestation
of collaborations that I've described
is to deny and push back,
every problem,
the best intentions of your critics.
a lot of these tactics.
a lot of the tactics
your organization will become better,
તમારી સંસ્થા વધુ સારી બનશે,
some good friends along the way.
રસ્તામાં કેટલાક સારા મિત્રો.
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Bob Langert - Corporate sustainability expertBob Langert consults, writes and speaks about corporate sustainability, showing how companies can successfully navigate and manage today’s controversial societal issues, become better corporate citizens and make their businesses stronger, more relevant and more profitable.
Why you should listen
As VP of sustainability at McDonald's, Bob Langert shaped the restaurant chain's commitment to the environment, supply chain sustainability and balanced menu choices. After retiring from McDonald's in 2015, Langert joined the GreenBiz Group, writing a regular column ("The Inside View"). He has advised several organizations on sustainability strategies, including the National Pork Council, Big Dutchman, Cadbury, Shell and Corteva. He is a popular speaker who has addressed audiences that include the Sustainable Agricultural Alliance, the United Egg Producers and the American Feed Industry Association.
In January 2019, Langert published The Battle to Do Good; Inside McDonald's Sustainability Journey. Based on his 25 years leading McDonald's sustainability and corporate responsibility efforts, Langert shares how he helped address some of the most significant societal issues of our times -- obesity, waste and packaging, deforestation in the Amazon, animal well-being and much more. The Economist wrote: "The Battle to Do Good: Inside McDonald's Sustainability Journey is a must-read even for those who are cynical about the business of corporate social responsibility."
From the late 80s, McDonald's landed smack in the middle of one contentious issue after another, often locking horns with powerful NGOs such as Greenpeace, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals and Corporate Accountability. This sudden shift from being the beloved Golden Arches since opening its doors in 1955, to the demon of many societal ills, caught McDonald's off guard. Langert chronicles the highs and lows that McDonald's experienced in turbulent times and how its sustainability journey evolved from playing defense to strategically solving issues with unlikely partners, including a whirling dervish, autistic animal scientist and avid environmentalists from the World Wildlife Fund and Conservation International.
Bob Langert | Speaker | TED.com