The Demand Revolution: How Consumers Are Redefining Sustainability and Transforming the Future of Business
Andreas Von Der Gathern, Nicolai Bfoby Eckert, and Caroline Kastbjerg
MIT Press (October 2024)

Sustainability is no longer sustainable. Now What?

As I began to work my way through The Demand Revolution, I was again reminded of several major research studies during which customers were asked what was of greatest importance to them. The results? A majority of respondents ranked “feeling appreciated” first or second.

Those supervisors who ignore or demean that revelation will soon be toast…or worse.

Andreas Von Der Gathern, Nicolai Bfoby Eckert, and Caroline Kastbjerg focus on four separate but interdependent clusters of issues and the inherent challenges associated with each:

1. Organizations’ failure to see and seize opportunities to establish and then sustain organizational sustainability
2. The compelling need to understand the nature and extent of these growth opportunities created by consumer demand
3. The impact of sustainability on customer behavior…and vice versa
4. How and why organizations must formulate and execute effective strategies that are guided and informed by a “growth imperative”

As they explain, “Now is the time for companies and their leaders to act. The existential challenge for business leaders now boils down to two questions: ‘Will you be bold enough to listen to what consumers are saying about sustainability and develop solutions to meet their needs?’ ‘Or will you concede the initiative to companies that will follow a new  paradigm of innovation and lock you out of the most lucrative opportunities?'”

These are among the passages of greatest interest and value to me, also listed to indicate the nature and scope of Von Der Gathern, Eckert, and Kastbjerg’s coverage:

o Preface (Pages xi-xii)
o The Fatal Defects of the Green Mirage (6-9)
o The Imperatives of the Demand Revolution (13-15)
o Change the Go-to-Mrkdet Strategy (16-17)
o Why Closing the Perception Gap Is Imperative (23-24)

o We Can Niche Our Way to Success (29-30)
o The Existential Challenge of Sustainability (31-33)
o Why Sustainability Is the Next Transformative Megatrend (37-40)
o The Roots of the Demand Revolution, and, The Basis for Our New Strategic Network (40-42 and 46-47)
o How Consumers Are Exerting a Strong Pull on Markets (47-50)

o From Excess Waste to Antiwaste (55-57)
o The Benefits of Moving First and Moving Fast (59-61)
o The Benefits of Greater Loyalty, Advocacy, and Share of Wallet (62-64)
o The Pace of Change Is Accelerating (68-72)
o Meet the Consumers behind the Demand Revolution, and, what the eight archetypes share in common  that “companies can incorporate into their commercial strategies” (72-78)

NOTE: At this point in the narrative, Von Der Gathern, Eckert, and Kastbjerg focus on a series of consumer types (i.ed. “revolutionaries”) that include Champions, Nonbelievers, Iimage Driven, Planet Servers, Thoughtfuls, Cost Conscious, Selectives, and Skeptics. They discuss each of the archetypes (i.e. the “revolutionaries”) in terms of (a) their defining characteristics, (b) what motivates them, (c) the barriers each one faces, and (d) how each searches for sustainability.

o Integrating the Segmentation into Existing Data, and with the Purchasing Journey (127-137)
o Deep Consumer Focus (147-148)
o Innovating and Expanding Business Models and Ecosystems (151-154)
o Following the Growth Imperative (172-173)
o Epilogue: Detours and High-Speed Lanes (201-205)

As you have no doubt noted already, these segment titles suggest all manner of questions to be addressed, challenges to contend with, themes and issues of special interest, and significant dimensions and nuances to be explored. Fortunately, we have Von Der Gathern, Eckert, and Kastbjerg as our mentors, guides, and companions during our journey of discovery.

Years ago, Southwest Airlines had become more profitable and had a greater cap value than all of its major competitors…COMBINED. Its then chairman and CEO (Herb Kelleher) was asked how. “We take great care of our people, they take great care of our customers, and our customers take great care of our shareholders.”

I commend Andreas Von Der Gathern, Nicolai Bfoby Eckert, and Caroline Kastbjerg on their brilliant, substantial contribution to thought leadership throughout the global marketplace and highly recommed it to all C-level executives and those who aspire to become one as well as to those who are now preparing for a business career or have only recently embarked upon one.

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Here are two suggestions while you are reading The Demand Revolution: First, highlight key passages. Also,  perhaps in a notebook kept near-at-hand (e.g. Apica Premium C.D. Notebook A5), record your comments, questions, and action steps (preferably with deadlines). Pay special attention to the Preface and the Epilogue.

These two simple tactics — highlighting and documenting — will expedite frequent reviews of key material later.