SC Johnson, Ingersoll Rand And World Environment Center Launch Collaboration To Develop Business Leaders
May 20, 2014 /3BL Media/ - The World Environment Center (WEC), a global non-profit organization, in partnership with S.C. Johnson and the Ingersoll Rand Foundation, announces today the launch of a major new initiative entitled Preparing Business Leaders for a Sustainable Future. Responding to a direct, stated need of business executives for improved sustainability skills of its newest hires, WEC will engage leaders in business and academia to integrate the design and teaching of sustainability within the core curriculum of leading universities. Beginning in North America, “Preparing Business Leaders for a Sustainable Future” will initially include 15 global companies and 15 business and engineering schools.
The SC Johnson, Ingersoll Rand Foundation and WEC initiative has three major goals: 1) Accelerate the sharing of business strategies, best practices and case studies from companies to the core curriculum of leading business and engineering schools; 2) Provide students with greater opportunities to work with companies as part of their formal university training; and 3) Enable companies to identify talented potential employees well in advance of campus recruiting.
S.C. Johnson and the Ingersoll Rand Foundation are together investing $350,000 in the initiative over the next two years. “Nothing is more important than preparing the next generation of leaders to address the needs of people and the planet,” said Kelly M. Semrau, Chief Sustainability Officer, SC Johnson. “SC Johnson is pleased to contribute to this important initiative that will embed a sustainability mindset in today’s students and tomorrow’s leaders.”
“We support connecting future engineers and business leaders to the reality of resource scarcity and the need for greater productivity from our existing resources. Our future designers and leaders will need a broader understanding of the impact of their designs and decisions, and the Sustainable Future program is a step to educate and broaden our thinking,” said Scott Tew, executive director for Ingersoll Rand’s Center for Energy Efficiency and Sustainability.
Added Terry F. Yosie, WEC’s President and CEO, “The global competition for talent and the increasing immediacy of sustainability challenges are making the development of new talent a business imperative.”
WEC’s implementation of this initiative will occur through a number of applications, including roundtables of professors, students, and business executives to build and update classroom content; internships and fellowships that sponsor students within WEC’s strong network of global companies; action-based learning for students; and professional publications.
About Ingersoll Rand
Ingersoll Rand (NYSE:IR) advances the quality of life by creating comfortable, sustainable and efficient environments. Our people and our family of brands—including Club Car®, Ingersoll Rand®, Thermo King® and Trane®—work together to enhance the quality and comfort of air in homes and buildings; transport and protect food and perishables; and increase industrial productivity and efficiency. We are a global business committed to a world of sustainable progress and enduring results. For more information, visit www.ingersollrand.com.
ABOUT SC JOHNSON
SC Johnson is a family company dedicated to innovative, high-quality products, excellence in the workplace and a long-term commitment to the environment and the communities in which it operates. Based in the USA, the company is one of the world's leading manufacturers of household cleaning products and products for home storage, air care, pest control and shoe care. It markets such well-known brands as GLADE®, KIWI®, OFF!®, PLEDGE®, RAID®, SCRUBBING BUBBLES®, SHOUT®, WINDEX® and ZIPLOC® in the U.S. and beyond, with brands marketed outside the U.S. including AUTAN®, TANA®, BAMA®, BAYGON®, BRISE®, KABIKILLER®, KLEAR®, MR MUSCLE®, and RIDSECT®. The 128-year-old company, that generates $9 billion in sales, employs nearly 13,000 people globally and sells products in virtually every country around the world. www.scjohnson.com
About the World Environment Center
The World Environment Center, headquartered in Washington, D.C., with offices and operations in emerging and developed markets, is unique in its direct application of sustainable development strategies and practices to the business operations of global companies. WEC creates sustainable business solutions through individual projects in emerging markets; convenes leadership roundtables to shape strategic thinking across a range of sustainability topics with a specific focus on the preparation of business leaders to implement sustainability; and honors industry excellence through its annual Gold Medal Award. An independent non-profit organization, WEC conducts no advocacy activities.
