How to conduct a sustainability transition at the company level? The role of impact valuation tools and management instruments

The practice of monetary valuation of environmental impacts has gained popularity in the private sector in recent years. The underlying assumption of the advocates of these methods is that adopting economic language to talk about environmental impacts helps to accelerate decisions in favor of sustainability in companies. This communication aims to investigate the role of management instruments, particularly those based on the monetary evaluation of environmental impacts, in the sustainability transition at company level. To do this, in order to compare expectations with usage, a survey of thirteen organizations (including three consultancy firms and nine multinationals) was conducted in order to understand this growing practice, to map existing impact assessment tools, as well as the way they are mobilized by companies. We concluded that impact assessment approaches are plural and range from communication to risk assessment, from measurement tools to discussion supports, whether between different departments of companies or with other stakeholders. Indeed, through some examples we illustrate how such tools can serve as a support to enroll decision-makers in the sustainability transition process, as well as the mediation role they play.