SigNar’s Sustainability Journey

This case study introduces the dilemma of Sasha, who needs to decide how the global integrated energy-intensive manufacturing company he works for in Central Europe should deal with sustainability queries from customers. Sasha is a financial controller who handles corporate reporting requirements, but mainly of a financial nature, and sustainability is not (yet) part of his professional remit—sustainability reporting is dealt with at SigNar’s global headquarters and not at the local subsidiary level. He has increasingly been getting enquiries from his internal company network, particularly from colleagues in sales, whose customers send them sustainability questionnaires and requests for joining third-party platforms for data input to assess their sustainability and thus inform these customers’ purchasing decisions. The case study introduces the situation and asks students to find a suitable way forward for Sasha and SigNar. Students will weigh three possible options presented in navigating the complexity of sustainability questionnaires in global companies where local subsidiaries receive queries from customers to better inform purchasing decisions.