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Right Honourable Kim Campbell Discusses the Climate Overshoot Commission Report

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One of the most challenging aspects of leadership is inheriting the problems of your predecessors. Great leaders, though, always look at the bigger picture – so they take responsibility for these problems they didn’t create and forge solutions for the organization’s greater good. Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun embodies this: he wasn’t at the company when the 737 went into production, but he takes accountability to fix its very public and dangerous issues, like a door popping off in flight.

This same leadership trait is even more important with climate change. Oil company C-suites learned of fossil fuel impacts on global warming as far back as the 1950s. Seven decades later, today’s C-suites must live with the consequences. And those economic consequences are billions of dollars worth of harshness that will drain bottom lines more and more.

Dan Mushalko, Executive Producer at the Innovative Leadership Institute, shared this article as a companion to the podcast with the Right Honourable Kim Campbell, 19th Prime Minister of Canada,  Climate Change: Leaders in the Hot Seat. This episode was produced in partnership with the International Leadership Association as part of their 25th Annual Global Conference held in October 2023. 

 

Check out past episodes of Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our Future on your favorite podcast platform, including Apple Podcasts, TuneIn, Spotify, Amazon Music, Audible, iHeartRADIO, and NPR One. 

So, what’s a business leader to do? Former Canadian Prime Minister Kim Campbell shared some actions in this week’s podcast:

1. Watch insurance companies.

“Insurance is the lubricant of business,” Kim says. Their actuaries don’t mess around, making decisions on cold, hard facts and stats. When you see them pulling out of certain geographic areas or particular types of business lines, you’ll know they see long-term climate impacts. Steer your organization clear of those, too!

2. Dig underneath the headlines to see the more profound impacts on your company…and its people.

Media reporting on climate change spills the spectacular. Blazing forest fires and pop-up category-five hurricanes make the headlines, but your work team suffers from subtler effects that don’t hit the news. For example, our new record-setting summer heatwaves impair cognitive capacities, leading to more workplace accidents. In one study, that led to over $1 billion in extra costs in California alone. Excess heat exposure can also exacerbate heart disease, kidney disease, diabetes, and other health issues.

3. Help your company be the example instead of the victim.

Unless you work for a very small business, your organization consumes a lot more energy and resources than your home. Spearheading climate-healing initiatives – whether it’s as simple as switching to all LED lighting or as large as powering the building with solar panels – sets an example for the community, reduces greenhouse gas emissions, and (after the upfront investment costs) decreases your long-term operating expenses. Several of us at the Innovative Leadership Institute recently saw directly the green initiatives Amazon is implementing…initiatives that, because of Amazon’s scale, will have definite environmental impacts while also creating long-term savings. But you don’t have to be a giant operation to see these benefits; Andrew Lessman’s Procaps Laboratories has been all-solar for decades.

4. Help your board see their role.

Boards have an outsize ability to move the needle for both for- and non-profit organizations, yet many just rubber-stamp one or two C-level executives’ desires. (How that leads to many recent CEO controversies is the subject of another article!) As a stakeholder, urge your board to ask tough questions about the company’s strategic plans in general and energy use and sources in particular. For example, switching to renewable energy sources is a true investment: there may be up-front costs, but they result in long-term savings. In the bigger picture, reducing climate change means less risk to company property, infrastructure, and thus profitability.

5. Take the moral high ground.

While the bulk of this article focuses on the business side, climate inaction has a moral aspect that we can’t responsibly ignore. We mentioned the health effects above; Kim Campbell points out we’re beginning to see these real-world climate impacts in our healthcare systems. Less obvious is the growing number of climate refugees: people forced to leave homes and jobs due to rising sea levels, droughts, floods, and more. And we’ve long known of the correlation between heat and boosts in violence. Your company’s decisions impact your community!

Directly and indirectly, extreme heat has chilling business consequences. But take hope: you can alter the course of climate change’s impact on your company. Just step up and take the lead.

 

Thank you for reading the Innovative Leadership Insights, where we bring you thought leaders and innovative ideas on leadership topics each week. The Innovative Leadership Institute strives to elevate the quality of leadership worldwide. 

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Weather Chanel CEO discusses Strengthening Your Business Strategy and Boost Revenue with Weather Data

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As a leader, when someone asks you, ‘How’s the weather?’ that’s only half the question. It’s really ‘How’s the weather hitting my revenue this quarter?’ Weather impacts almost every business’s financials in some way…yet very few leaders even consider it in their plans!

Sheri Bachstein, CEO of The Weather Company, discusses how weather data strengthens business results on the podcast, Over the Weather: Leadership at the Weather Channel. Maureen Metcalf, CEO of the Innovative Leadership Institute, shares this article as a companion to her podcast.

Listen to the companion interview and past episodes of Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our Future via Apple Podcasts, TuneIn, Spotify, Amazon Music, Audible, iHeartRADIO, and NPR One.

From supply chain disruptions to changes in consumer behavior, the economic toll exceeds a staggering $500 billion annually. With weather patterns becoming more unpredictable, developing an effective weather strategy is key for leaders across all industries.

Across sectors, weather significantly influences operations. For the aviation industry, approximately 75% of delays trace back to weather. One major airline employs meteorologists to monitor conditions in real time, working to minimize passenger disruptions. Beyond flight operations, weather also affects critical business functions like manufacturing, logistics, and marketing.

Consider consumer buying habits — warmer winter days may lift ice cream sales while extreme heat limits construction activity. By overlaying weather data with retail purchasing analytics, businesses can identify trends and better predict demand shifts from weather triggers. They can then adjust inventory levels or target relevant promotions to match consumer behavior.

Even the healthcare industry can benefit from comprehensive weather data. For example, The Weather Company found over 70% of their users visit their platforms weekly to get forecasts to prepare for effects on health conditions. So, they provide relevant alerts on bad air quality days for asthma sufferers or tips to stay hydrated during heat waves. Retailers can stock up on products aligned to upcoming weather patterns to ensure ample availability of goods that customers want to purchase. And they can also trigger contextually relevant promotions when the weather drives specific shopping missions.

The same approach applies across multiple industries, helping insurance agencies model risk, retailers stock shelves, and event coordinators plan more effectively. The key is developing a cohesive weather strategy.

With abundant weather data available, businesses should tap historical records, real-time monitoring, forecast models, and even probabilistic projections to inform decisions. While foundational weather metrics provide a directional guide, deriving actionable business insights requires thoughtful analysis.

Leveraging weather data to trigger automated marketing campaigns or to build predictive financial models allows companies to get ahead of challenges and spot new opportunities. When paired with machine learning and AI, these weather-based analytics promise even greater competitive advantage.

While the scale of the climate crisis seems daunting, collective action offers hope. As consumers and business leaders, we each have a valuable role to play. Evaluating your organization’s weather strategy marks an important first step. The next time the weather disrupts your supply chain or when a heat wave spikes sales of your summer collection, think of it as nature sending you free data.

Will you use these signals to actively boost your business performance? The choice is yours. But one thing is certain – with a comprehensive weather strategy, you can add a little financial sunshine to each rainy day.

 

ABOUT THE GUEST:

Sheri Bachstein began her career with The Weather Channel nearly 30 years ago as a field producer (otherwise known as storm chaser). Today, as the CEO of The Weather Company, an IBM business (and parent company of The Weather Channel), she holds a deep appreciation for and understanding of weather’s impact on consumers, communities, and businesses. Under her leadership, The Weather Channel is recognized as one of the top 10 most trusted brands in the U.S., the world’s leading provider of weather, and the world’s most accurate forecaster, helping hundreds of enterprise-level companies leverage weather data to increase consumer loyalty and business performance.

 

Thank you for reading the Innovative Leadership Insights, where we bring you thought leaders and innovative ideas on leadership topics each week.

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES:

Ready to measure your leadership skills? Complete your complimentary assessment through the Innovative Leadership Institute. Learn the 7 leadership skills required to succeed during disruption and innovation.

Check out the companion interview and past episodes of Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our Future on your favorite podcast platform, including Apple Podcasts, TuneIn, Spotify, Amazon Music, Audible, iHeartRADIO, and NPR One.