Forty years.
One Question.
Why has business sustainability produced so much activity… and so little transformation?
That question has guided my work for more than four decades—from research and development at SC Johnson, through seventeen years working alongside William McDonough and Dr. Michael Braungart, to advising organizations around the world.
It led to an uncomfortable conclusion.
The problem isn’t that business lacks sustainability strategies.
The problem is that most organizations are making tomorrow’s decisions using yesterday’s assumptions.
That is the Sustainability Ceiling.
Everything I do is designed to help leaders understand why it exists—and how to move beyond it.
If This Question Sounds Familiar…
Perhaps you’ve experienced it yourself.
- Your sustainability metrics are improving, but the overall trajectory isn’t.
- Your organization has ambitious goals, yet meaningful transformation remains elusive.
- Your reporting becomes more sophisticated while progress feels increasingly incremental.
- You know something deeper needs to change, but you can’t quite identify what it is.
You’re not alone.
These are symptoms of the same underlying pattern.
The Sustainability Ceiling™
For forty years we’ve developed better tools.
Better reporting.
Better standards.
Better certifications.
Better targets.
Yet the trajectory remains stubbornly unchanged.
Why?
Because every strategy is built upon assumptions.
If those assumptions remain unexamined, better strategies simply produce better versions of the same results.
The Sustainability Ceiling™ is the point where strategy reaches the limit of the beliefs that created it.
Beyond the Ceiling
Over four decades my work has evolved into an integrated approach to organizational transformation.
It begins by understanding why organizations produce the results they do.
It continues by redesigning the beliefs that shape decisions.
And it culminates in designing organizations that create enduring commercial success while strengthening the conditions that support life.
This work is expressed through:
Design Like Nature™ — A practical methodology for organizational redesign.
Our Common Future—Now — Why sustainability reached its ceiling.
Perfectly Wrong — How artificial intelligence is amplifying yesterday’s assumptions.
Three Ways We Can Work Together
Speak
Keynotes that challenge conventional thinking and change executive conversations.
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Assess
The Sustainability Ceiling Assessment™ helps leadership teams identify where transformation has stalled—and why.
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Advise
Long-term strategic partnership for organizations redesigning the way they create value.
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Books
Our Common Future—Now
A new explanation for why forty years of sustainability produced so much progress—and so little transformation.
Perfectly Wrong
Why AI is faithfully reproducing sustainability’s hidden assumptions—and what leaders must do about it.
Real Circularity
Practical guidance for turning circular economy theory into everyday business practice.
Latest Thinking
The Conversation Starts Here
Every significant transformation begins with a better question.
If the question that has guided my career resonates with the challenges facing your organization, I’d welcome the opportunity to continue the conversation.