Also emerging is a better understanding of the specific environmental strategies that characterize successful actions of leaders who believe environmental issues can translate into great opportunity. At the same time, many attempts to capitalize on environmental trends have failed or even backfired. To succeed in this new arena, top management must take a sophisticated and informed approach towards environmental management issues. Environmental leaders deal with these concerns at every operating level. Public demand for environmentally sound products continues to,grow.
Consumers expect companies to factor the environment into their operations.
Companies that ignore the environmental implications of their product decisions will eventually lose market share and consumer loyalty . This trend is also increasingly true in intermediate markets, where large purchasers are beginning to demand environmentally sound products from their suppliers. Companies once reticent about environmental policies are now actively participating in public debates over these policies and working with environmental groups to implement innovations in their businesses. The Environmental Defense Fund's work with McDonald's led to that firm's banning of polystyrene packaging. McDonald's now has the most stringent supplier policies regarding packaging of anyone in the fast-food industry.