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CEO2: Do you have what it takes to be a Business CEO in a Greening World?
WWF recently teamed up with Allianz and LGM Interactive to create an awesome business-oriented climate change game. The objective: Significantly cut CO2 emissions, maximize profits, and develop low-carbon products by 2030. Think you can do it?
Imagine yourself as the CEO of a big company. For years, you’ve had to deal with employees, investors, customers, finances, marketing, and so forth. Now, you have an even bigger issue to deal with: the environment. With all the mounting pressure to reduce CO2 emissions and appeal to a greener audience, it’s your job to decide what kind of changes to make so your business can fit into a more ecologically conscious world.
Image by Allianz
The game offers 4 industries for you to choose from: insurance, auto, chemical, and energy. You can choose to play immediately, or you can view a short animation about each industry and the challenges they face. For example: the energy industry needs to meet consumer demand with competitive prices, while making acceptable environmental changes that can handle the increase in consumption levels. Insurance companies need to decide on new products or services that focus on a green lifestyle, plus research climate risks, while still appealing to their more out-dated (but loyal) investors. And so forth.
Regardless of which industry you choose (and you can play all of them, in any order), you are given the same rules and set of options. First of all, you need to browse through your folder of suggested business changes. Included in these suggestions are options for creating new products, marketing and governmental lobbying, upgrading your offices or factories, research, and so forth. Will you go for the hybrid auto industry, or do you still want to appeal to those with the older car models? Do you think wind power is a good idea, or would you like to research other options? Think those coastal tourist traps could use more insurance, or how about a better deal for those making green home improvements?
Yeah, it’s a lot to think about, but fortunately, you have several advisors waiting to help you. (Don’t forget, you are the CEO, after all.) Investors, Researchers, Consumers, and Environmentalists are all waiting for your call so they can give you some insider advice on each industry. Or, you could simply research the info on your laptop. Each decision you make will cost you a certain percentage of your funds and will either have a positive, negative, or neutral impact on CO2 emissions. For example, most of the research options have a neutral (0%) impact on CO2 emissions. However, adding new products or making changes to your current line could either raise or lower your emissions. Also, it should be noted that any decision you make can be removed (or re-added) to the list—that is, until you finalize it.
Clicking that button is the point of no return. You will see a line graph of how your profits and CO2 emissions change, with some random pop-ups on why things changed. Oh, and your board of advisors will be there to tell you what they think. In my case, I had some issues with the Investors, but otherwise it was all thumbs up.
It should be noted that while this game will give you an idea of what businesses are dealing with and how their decisions might impact the environment, it is still just a game. Consider it a fun, educational experience—not a substitute for actual business procedure or legal advice.
As for how I did, well, it would seem that the chemical and auto industries are my strong suits (100% reduction in emissions, plus good profits), but my energy and insurance experience could use some work (60% and 71% reduction in emissions, but still good profits).
Click here to play the game now and find out if you can make it as a green business, or if you’ll succumb to the pressures of greenwashing.
By Heidi Marshall
Tags: Allianz, business game, CEO2, CEO2 game, climate change game, Green business, green CEO, WWF
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