By Denis Sheehan FIH: Sustainability making inroads to business culture: The H&C News Sustainability Roundtable 2023, in Partnership with Meiko UK.
2023 has witnessed extreme weather across our planet all too frequently, climate change is irrefutably underway, and alongside that comes a responsibility for everyone to adopt a more sustainable lifestyle. The global scale of the problem leads some to question what can be done, individuals, groups of people, countries and continents cannot solve the crisis on their own. Everyone needs to act, and act now to minimise the damage taking place in front of our eyes, which is our legacy to future generations.
One such group being the people within the hospitality and catering industry. As with every other segment of the population many individuals and businesses lead the way in adopting responsibility by acting sustainably. Part of recognising that duty of care is shared learning, helping others to fast track solutions rather than relearning what others can pass on.
Sharing learning
Earlier this month a group of hospitality and catering people, responsible for their business and/or sustainability within it gathered at The Dorchester in London’s Park Lane for the 2023 H&C News Sustainability Roundtable in Partnership with Meiko UK.
The delegate attendees were…
- Angus Brydon, BM Caterers, Managing Director
- Anna Hawkins, The Belfry, Sustainability Lead
- Chris Eigelaar, The Belfry, Resort Director
- Chris Gooder, Bespoke Hotels, Regional Director
- Dan Kelly, Savore, Chief Executive Officer
- Denis Sheehan, Publisher, H&C News
- Faith Foote, Guarantee Laundries, Director
- Jack Ward, Ecolab, Corporate Account Manager, Institutional Division, UK & Ireland
- Jane Grammar, Dorchester Collection, Diversity & Belonging Champion
- Jupiter Humphrey Bishop, The Royal Household, Gold Service Scholarship Scholar 2023
- Kalindi Juneja, PoB Hotels, Chief Executive Officer
- Maureen Mills, Network London, Director
- Piers Zangana, Susa Communications, Director
- Robert Richardson, Institute of Hospitality, Chief Executive Officer
- Robin Sheppard, Bespoke Hotels, President
- Rosie Rayner Law, CH&CO, Sustainability Business Partner
- Sophie Whitfield, Sodexo, Head of Corporate Responsibility Engagement
Please note: Chatham House Rules apply to the reporting below.
Sustainable culture evident
The event takes place annually and has previously covered many elements of the sustainability equation, this year the agenda was centred around instilling sustainability within the culture of hospitality and catering operators and suppliers.
Many of the delegates work with global businesses where shared learning, both planned and inspired, came to the fore. Witnessing what colleagues are doing, strategically, tactically, and on an ad hoc basis suggested strongly that sustainability was indeed in the process of being instilled within corporate culture’s.
Similarly, UK businesses with multiple venues reported similar motivation throughout the networks of their operations. As did others from a single venue perspective, as well as departmental views.
The discussions hinted that a culture inclusive of sustainable considerations pervaded, the subtlety of the message was its strongest component.
Authenticity key to learning
One theme that emerged was that both through practical learning, and customer surveys, the results aren’t always what you expect.
One example was given citing a customer survey where the results showed customers expected sustainability to be evident in their experience with the provider but were less favourable to paying a premium for it. The results did not slow investment into the brand being more sustainable and rather than seek a premium, better understanding of customer needs, and marketing to meet those needs enabled a return on investment through higher footfall.
Another example was client driven through a want to more plant based. The client wanted to achieve this objective in what the provider felt was an unrealistic time frame, too much too soon. An alternative strategy was deployed that simply reduced protein volumes in percentage terms over time. The roll out achieved the objectives, again through a different route than at first visualised.
Authenticity was applied in both instances, and others, and as such knowledge and knowhow shaped the best possible solutions.
Strong language
It was noticeable that the language and tone applied by delegates at this year’s event had ratcheted up a few notches from previous years. Phrases like “we need to make the world a better place”, “sustainability is at the heart of every business decision we take”, “ensuring we live, and breath sustainability” were not uncommon. It is perhaps a barometer of the weightiness with which sustainability is now viewed.
Our shared journey
It was recognised that everyone’s at a different stage of this journey, alongside shared measurement criteria being vital. We need to go further in our journey was also accepted in conjunction with the need to do so without waiting for statute to direct.
Sustainability lifecycle
As discussions delved deeper into what’s happening across the businesses present, that collectively employ many hundreds of thousands of people, where we are in terms of applying Raymond Vernon’s product lifecycle to the adoption of sustainability in our working lives came up. It emerged as a question towards the conclusion of the event and time did not allow for scrutiny. One for next time perhaps…
Thank you’s
First and foremost a huge thank you to Paul Anderson and the team at Meiko UK for sponsoring the event and making it possible.
Thank you also to Eugenio Pirri and the team from Dorchester Collection for providing the perfect venue for our event. Having worked with Dorchester Collection at both Coworth Park and The Dorchester for many years, working with a brand you can always trust to deliver makes organising events a pleasure.
Last and not least on behalf of H&C News I would like to thank each and every delegate for their time and input on the day, it is much appreciated.
If you would like to hear directly from the delegates on the discussions, you can do so through the video featured below.
The H&C News Sustainability Roundtable 2024, in Partnership with Meiko UK