Laurent Abadie was appointed chairman and chief executive of Panasonic Europe in April 2009. A French citizen, he was the first non-Japanese director to take the role. Abadie joined Panasonic France as managing director in 2004.
Ethical Corporation: Panasonic aims to become the “number one” green innovation company in the electronics industry by 2018. What’s the motivation behind this target?
Laurent Abadie: Panasonic was founded in 1918 and built on the philosophy that we should “contribute to progress in society and to enriching people’s lives through manufacturing”. This is still true for us today.
EC: What’s your strategy for achieving this goal?
LA: We have set ourselves some mid-term targets covering two main focus areas: Green Life Innovation, where we promote lifestyles with virtually zero CO2emissions; and Green Business Innovation, where we create and pursue green business-styles.
EC: How is senior management being incentivised to contribute towards the 2018 goals?
Laurent Abadie: The remuneration and bonuses of our board directors are linked to the individual performance as well as environmental management indicators such as CO2emission reduction.
EC: At Panasonic, do you differentiate between the term “green” and the term “sustainable”?
LA: The words “sustainable” and “green” have become buzz words. They actually mean two different things. Sustainability goes well beyond “green” by combining the three pillars of economy, society and environment. We see ecology as part of all our sustainability and CSR efforts since our responsibility for nature can’t be separated from our responsibility for future generations and the society we live in.
EC: If you had to pick one green “idea for life” from Panasonic’s recent innovations, what would it be?
LA: Our “eco ideas” concept house in Japan is a great example. It creates, saves and stores electricity, demonstrating how we can live with virtually no CO2emissions. Electricity is generated through fuel cells and solar panels, then stored in a large lithium ion battery. In addition to this, we use energy-saving home appliances and building materials that provide high insulation in the house.
EC: Panasonic is involved in a couple of green field “eco cities” in Japan and China. How replicable are these elsewhere?
LA: We believe the Smart Sustainable Town could indeed be a model for future sustainable urban planning. These are cities in which sustainability is well established through an ecosystem for all urban functions, such as travel, power creation and distribution and housing. Their main goal is to achieve a lifestyle that is comfortable and sustainable at the same time. This can also be applied to cities around the world that already have established infrastructure.
EC: Panasonic is investing heavily in fuel cell generation and battery storage. Do you see renewables challenging oil in the near term?
LA: It is obvious that the demand for oil is on the rise more than ever. But we see the demand for sustainable energy increasing in the coming years due to consumers globally becoming more environmentally conscious. This is spurred on by the fact that there are significant cost savings to be had by decreasing consumption of traditional energy. We are also happy to see governments supporting this step-change towards greener living, such as the move towards renewable energy in Germany.
EC: With demand for consumer electronics set to boom in emerging economies, how is Panasonic addressing the implications for e-waste?
LA: There are various challenges posed by each country and region, so we are working with stakeholders in each society to develop efficient recycling schemes. In China, for example, Panasonic and other companies have recently established a recycling company called Panasonic Hangzhou DADI. The new recycling company will collect and disassemble used home appliances and electronics, and sell recovered materials in compliance with Chinese rules.
EC: The environment faces some huge problems. Japan is famous for its management theory of “continuous improvement”. Will this deliver the necessary results or is a more radical approach required?
LA: Amid a global focus on global warming prevention, governments and international organisations around the world are stepping up their efforts. Panasonic supports these efforts from a point of view that drastic greenhouse gas emission reduction by innovative technological development must be achieved.
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Fast facts: Panasonic Global
Company name Panasonic Corporation
Headquarters Osaka, Japan
Company president Fumio Ohtsubo
Founded1918 (incorporated in December 1935)
Net annual sales 2010/11 $108bn
Number of employees 366,937
Number of consolidated companies 634 (including parent company)