Many analysts regard the December Copenhagen summit a failure, due to the world leaders being unable to agree on any meaningful declarations on climate-change targets. However, it would be a mistake to think that this means that climate change and eco-friendly business is now no longer a priority issue for business.
As part of the survey for the January Synovate Business Outlook, 77 per cent of the 135 business leaders questioned in Thailand said eco-friendly working practices were important to consider in developing strategic and operating plans, against about 18 per cent saying it was unimportant.
Notably, 21 per cent of respondents saw opportunities in climate change while nearly 19 per cent saw it as a risk to business. Nearly one-third of the respondents saw an equal balance of risk and opportunity, with 27 per cent viewing it as having no impact on their business.
"In Thailand we have seen the recent developments where individuals have successfully used the legal system to enforce their views and opinions on business. There are definite signs that Thai consumers and businesses are developing stronger views and opinions on the issue of eco-friendly business practices and how they should be applied to companies within Thailand," the consulting firm said.
However, only three-fourths of business leaders see climate change as a strategic and operating issue. This is not a sufficient catalyst for business in Thailand to develop a policy on how to respond to the climate-change agenda.
Only 42 per cent of businesses have a policy in place for climate change. The rest have still to act, with over 36 per cent of respondents stating that they have no plans to put in place a climate-change policy.
Synovate noted that while governments, businesses and consumers around the world are working towards placing eco-friendly business practices at the heart of their economies, it would seem that business in Thailand still has much to do.
When asked what, if anything, business had done in the last two years to understand the needs and expectations of their customers, only 42 per cent had actively sought insights into the customers' requirements and expectations, while 55 per cent had done nothing.
