Ray anderson, interface founder and sustainability. That benchmark was anderson s doing, way back in the early 1990s, when he experienced the spear in the chest epiphany that would launch the. Working swiftly to develop a plan to reduce the companys impact on the environment, interface focused on reducing impact in three key areas of the business. Anderson was chairman and chief executive of the worlds largest carpettile manufacturer when he read a book that described people like him as thieves and plunderers of the planet. Anderson s most popular book is confessions of a radical industrialist. In an effort to discover the answer to that question, he read a book. New conscious capitalism documentary to inspire business. This book has been a great inspiration and educational tool for me as i work to build sustainability thinking into my own companys culture. Ray andersons green business legacy the new york times. Ray anderson sustainability, wellbeing, environmental. When interface s founder, the late ray anderson, set a target for his business to have zero impact on the environment by 2020 many thought it. The business logic of sustainability believe me or not, i come offering a solution to a very important part of this larger problem, with the requisite focus on climate.
Ray anderson wants his carpet tile company to become a sustainable operation that does no harm to the biosphere by 2020. Anderson, you likely know, was founder and chairman of interface, inc. But behind the fresh design is a decadesdeep commitment to. Ray anderson watch his tedtalk, the chairman and founder of carpet company interface inc. Ray anderson, the advocate of sustainability in business, died on monday at age 77. Interface is using solar and wind power in the place of fossil fuels and is planting trees to offset the pollution caused by trucks transporting its carpet. Hed spent the last 17 years promoting the benefits of sustainable business practices, not only for protecting the. Ray anderson confessions of a radical industrialist. If ray s carpet company a petroleum intensive manufacturer, can achieve these goals and recognise the benefits, then any business can do the same. I had the pleasure of spending a weekend with him at a workshop sponsored by his company, interface carpet. Ray anderson founded the company that makes covetable flor carpeting.
Anderson, a leading green business advocate and founder of interface, one of the worlds largest carpet manufacturers, died this week. Ray anderson received a host of accolades throughout his life, including. Interface is a long time partner of the natural step and is. Ray had a spear in the chest epiphany when he first read paul hawkens the ecology of commerce, inspiring him to revolutionize his business in pursuit of environmental sustainability. Ray anderson founded interface, the company that makes carpet tiles. Dear readers, this article is in honor of ray anderson, a veteran in the field of business sustainability. Interface created aggressive sustainability targets after founder ray anderson s famous spear in the chest moment in 1994.
Ray said, the only way the earth can change is if business, the most pervasive and influential force on the planet, is willing to lead. And the solution i offer is to the biggest culprit in this massive mistreatment of the earth by. Share ray anderson quotations about business, sustainability and earth. After reading paul hawkens book, the ecology of commerce, anderson made a decision to change the way he operated his business. He proved to the world that swinging for the sustainability fences is not bad for business. After reading the book, anderson put interface on a quest. Family of interface founder ray anderson carrying on his.
Since ray anderson s passing in 2011, interface is still on track to become a zerowaste company by 2020. Anderson transitioned from daytoday management of interface to nonexecutive chairman in 2001, and spent the next 10 years focusing his time and energy on the business case for sustainability, delivering more than 1,000 speeches and authoring two books on the topic. Midcourse correction revisited by ray anderson chelsea. To ray anderson, sustainability offers a new business model and a new future characterized by. Ray anderson set out to make his business sustainable long before green was the flavor of the month.
He transformed his corporate philosophy, believing that it was industrys responsibility to lead the sustainability revolution. The business case for sustainability is explained by ray anderson, founder and chairmen of interfaceflor. Midcourse correction 1998 and confessions of a radical industrialist 2009. The company he founded, the carpet manufacturer interface, set what may well be the highest sustainability benchmark of any.
Anderson has books on goodreads with 1182 ratings. The report shows other companies that sustainability inspires interfaces employees, leading to new and better technological innovations in the field. At his carpet company, ray anderson has increased sales and doubled profits while turning the traditional take make waste industrial system on its head. Interface is transforming itself from an extension of the petrochemical industry to a truly sustainable corporation aiming at a zero footprint. Interface is a long time partner of the natural step and is a proven leader when it comes. Meanwhile, anderson continues to move interface toward his goal of complete sustainability, making products in a way that will not rob future generations of raw materials or energy resources.
He proved to the world that swinging for the sustainability. In a gentle, understated way, he shares a powerful vision for sustainable commerce. Dispelling the costly myths associated with sustainability, ray publishes interfaces annual report showcasing how profitable interface became since embracing this idea. Anderson was founder and chairman of interface, inc.
In recent years, anderson has embarked on a mission to make interface a sustainable corporation by leading a worldwide war on waste and pioneering the processes of sustainable development. He was a serious businessman, focused on building his company and making great products. I was enormously saddened yesterday to hear of the death of ray anderson, founder of interface, a selfdescribed radical. The business logic of sustainability free summary by ray. In doing so ray proved that business can indeed do well. His idea is to further extend the environmental impact equation, decreasing affluence to be less reflective of pure wealth and. When paul hawken, author of the ecology of commerce named and shamed ray anderson the founder and ceo of interface, a petroleumintensive carpet manufacturer as a plunderer of the earth in 1994, anderson took the criticism to heart. Ray anderson, not elon musk, is the most inspiring ceo of our lifetime. Ray dives into the world of sustainability and begins to shape business practices with a sustainable lens. Share his powerful tedtalk in which he explores the personal, ethical and practical motives for building a responsible business.
In september of this year, ray anderson, the founder and chairman of interface carpets, published his second book as a response to the corporate leaders who continue to question the value and economic return for a commitment to environmentally and socially sustainable business. Ray anderson has evolved from determined entrepreneur to sustainability minded philosopher. Interface report highlights 25 years of sustainability. But behind the fresh design is a decadesdeep commitment to sustainable ways of doing business culminating in the mission zero plan. Ray anderson, ceo of interface, one of the worlds largest commercial carpeting manufacturers, told 140 bawb summit participants that his company is climbing the seven faces of mount sustainability one face at a time and they are 40% of the way to the top. Ray anderson is a selfprofessed plunderer turned recovering plunderer. Now, in the most inspiring business book of our time, anderson leads the way forward and challenges all. Ray anderson, chairman and founder of interface, has died aged 77. A special firstlook event was held recently in atlanta for beyond zero, a documentary in development on the life of ray anderson. Then he read paul hawkens book the ecology of commerce.
Interface was founded in 1973 by ray anderson, whose decade and a half in the carpet trade had led him to create one of. Hear ray anderson, founder and chairman of interface, inc. Together, he and interface funded the creation of the andersoninterface chair in natural systems at georgia tech, where associate professor valerie thomas conducts research in sustainability. He founded interface in 1973 to equip the emerging, technologydriven office of the future with a new kind of carpet, a floor covering that could change along with its owners needs, as he writes. Its founder, ray anderson, was featured in the documentary film the corporation discussing environmental sustainability in modern business. Interface climbs the 7 faces of mount sustainability. Simply conforming to government regulations didnt satisfy anderson, who has made the march toward total sustainability an integral part of his companys customer appeal. Ray anderson, founder of interface and green business pioneer, died monday from cancer at the age of 77, leaving an important legacy. I was enormously saddened yesterday to hear of the death of ray anderson, founder of interface, a selfdescribed radical industrialist and longtime champion of sustainability.
Ray anderson is more than just the founder and chairman of the worlds largest manufacturer of modular carpeting, hes also the grandfather of corporate sustainability. Book 3 in cleantechnica s occasional book club explains why. Ray anderson of interface textile manufacturer ray anderson of interface is looking to build a truly sustainable company in one of the worlds dirtiest industries. You come away feeling like sustainability is a possibility for any organization. He knew more than any other about how to turn a nasty, notorious.