GREEN THINKING On a mission
You may have noticed that we have included a Green Thinking section in the regular OPI newsletter emails over the past few weeks. We also published a podcast where I chatted to our News Editor Andy Braithwaite about OPI’s increasing coverage of all things sustainability and CSR (see OPI’s ‘CSR mission statement’ below and check out www.opi.net/podcast). While OPI has focused on these topics for a long time, we feel it is time to seriously ramp up coverage, over and above our annual Green Thinking special issue at the end of the year. If you’re wondering why we have kept the title ‘Green Thinking’ when environmental, social and governance (ESG) is so much more than just sustainability, the answer is simple. It is a well-known OPI brand. But rest assured, we will be covering all aspects of ESG, including diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI). You’ll see a lot more of both these acronyms in the future. As a trusted source of information, we are in a position to help the industry become more sustainable – in all its guises. Moving forward, you’ll find plenty of news, thought leadership and opinion articles, features and case studies, not only in these pages but across various OPI platforms. To achieve this, I’d like to call upon our readers to get in touch with Andy for any news-related stories or feel free to email me if you’d like to contribute in any way. I look forward to hearing from you.
Sustainability project tops Lyreco innovation search European reseller Lyreco recently held its first Demo Day event as teams from across the group pitched new ideas as part of the company’s intrapreneur programme, Lyreco Pioneers. In the inaugural year of the initiative, the first round of Lyreco Pioneers had attracted 261 entries. The brief called for concepts that could either help simplify the way in which Lyreco manages internal or customer processes or further the work already being undertaken by the company as a leader in the sustainability space. After the initial selection process, six ideas were taken into the ‘incubation phase’. This provided the selected teams with an opportunity to be coached on what it takes to develop a business concept by external partner Schoolab, an innovation studio that specialises in training clients in responsible innovation. At the Demo Day in the Belgian capital Brussels, the six teams presented their projects to a panel of internal and external judges in front of an in-person and online audience. They had just six minutes to convince the judges why their idea should progress to what is known as the ‘acceleration phase’. The winning entry was from Jaroslaw Chwastowicz and Krzysztof Szewczyk from Lyreco Poland. They pitched a Sustainability Dashboard concept, and now have four months to turn their prototype into a live service that can be tested with customers. “The launch of Lyreco Pioneers provides our teams with an opportunity to release their pioneering spirit,” said CEO Greg Liénard. “To be a pioneer, you need to push the barriers, to look at the impossible and go further to challenge the status quo. Sometimes it is difficult and sometimes we fail, but we consistently try to get better – particularly when it comes to sustainable practices.” Programme leader Marc Curtis added: “Through the incubation period, the teams had an opportunity to learn so many new skills partnering with Schoolab. From design thinking to running customer research, they were exposed to the methodologies required to take an idea to the next stage. This valuable experience will make them great innovation ambassadors within our organisation.” The reseller will begin the search for its next group of Pioneers in September.
Best Buy launches home pick-up recycling
MICHELLE STURMAN, DEPUTY EDITOR
www.opi.net
CSR MISSION STATEMENT
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OPI aims to be a driving force behind the business supplies industry’s move towards more effective environmental, social and economic governance. Our goal is to facilitate meaningful conversations that help keep sustainable development at the forefront of every business action.
US-based retailer Best Buy is launching a service to collect old tech from customers’ homes and then recycle it. Anyone in the country can now go online and request pick-up and recycling for old and unwanted electronics through Best Buy’s Standalone Haul-Away service. For $199.99 (or $160 for Best Buy Totaltech members), it includes two large products (such as TVs, major appliances, monitors and all-in-one computers) and an unlimited number of select smaller items (including laptops, cameras, phones, etc). This new offering is in addition to the current Haul-Away service offered by Best Buy when customers order a new appliance or TV. Consumers can also continue to drop off for free up to three electronics items per household per day at Best Buy stores. Tim Dunn, Best Buy’s Head of Environmental Sustainability, pointed to the company’s role in being there for the entire life cycle of a product, from the time a buyer starts shopping until the item is responsibly recycled.
