Course Preview | Strategies for a Circular Economy – Online from INSEAD Executive Education
3:42 min
33
Greetings. My name is Atalay Atasu. I'm a professor of Technology and Operations Management at Inseat and also the holder of the Bianca and James Pit Chair in Environmental Sustainability. I teach sustainability fundamentals and economics of circularity to a variety of business audiences. And I'm particularly excited to welcome you to this circular economy focused program because the circular economy has been my research focus for 2 decades. Perrin, I had the privilege to do research with for profit organizations as well as studying policy issues. As managers and leaders in your organizations, you have likely focused attention on recycling and sustainability and many have discussed circularity to some extent. But what exactly is circularity? Is it about recycling? Is it about reusing valuable materials more?
In my research and interactions with leading organizations in the sustainable business paradigm, I have come to learn that none of that is true. Circularity is more about resource efficiency combined with pollution prevention, both of which entail complex challenges associated with product model choices beyond recycling.
One of the easiest ways to get a good sense of what circularity is and how to make it successful is to look at organizations out there that have been doing this successfully for a long time. But when we look at these organizations, we see that they have very different forms of circularity in place. What explains those different choices in circularity execution? Is it because of their industry, their product focus, or their leadership ambitions?
So in this program, we will explore different circular business models and what drives different organizations to adapt one model over another. We will start with an introduction to the circular economy, identifying the basic principles of circularity and discussing the challenges of implementing a circular economy. Next, we will focus on designing for circularity, including various circular design options, followed by a deep dive into our proprietary value access process framework.
Getting set, we will then take what we have learned into an actionable platform where we can get a better sense of what it means to execute circularity in an economically viable fashion. And finally, we will explore a circular business model framework based on research and analysis I conducted with several colleagues for over 2 decades.
So by the end of the program, you will be able to describe the principles of a circular economy, identify the challenges of circularity, create a framework linking product or market characteristics to circular business model choices, experience the circular business model from design to strategy, and finally, create a road map for circularity at your organization. You will accomplish these objectives by engaging in discussions with your peers, reviewing case studies, responding to polls, and participating in Action Learning Plan exercises. The Action Learning Plan exercises are designed to allow you to apply these learnings to your own organization and culminate in a road map to circularity, again for your organization.
In my research and interactions with leading organizations in the sustainable business paradigm, I have come to learn that none of that is true. Circularity is more about resource efficiency combined with pollution prevention, both of which entail complex challenges associated with product model choices beyond recycling.
One of the easiest ways to get a good sense of what circularity is and how to make it successful is to look at organizations out there that have been doing this successfully for a long time. But when we look at these organizations, we see that they have very different forms of circularity in place. What explains those different choices in circularity execution? Is it because of their industry, their product focus, or their leadership ambitions?
So in this program, we will explore different circular business models and what drives different organizations to adapt one model over another. We will start with an introduction to the circular economy, identifying the basic principles of circularity and discussing the challenges of implementing a circular economy. Next, we will focus on designing for circularity, including various circular design options, followed by a deep dive into our proprietary value access process framework.
Getting set, we will then take what we have learned into an actionable platform where we can get a better sense of what it means to execute circularity in an economically viable fashion. And finally, we will explore a circular business model framework based on research and analysis I conducted with several colleagues for over 2 decades.
So by the end of the program, you will be able to describe the principles of a circular economy, identify the challenges of circularity, create a framework linking product or market characteristics to circular business model choices, experience the circular business model from design to strategy, and finally, create a road map for circularity at your organization. You will accomplish these objectives by engaging in discussions with your peers, reviewing case studies, responding to polls, and participating in Action Learning Plan exercises. The Action Learning Plan exercises are designed to allow you to apply these learnings to your own organization and culminate in a road map to circularity, again for your organization.
