MSc Management Course Unit Sustainability and Social Responsibility - BMAN 73102

Hello, dear friend, you can consult us at any time if you have any questions, add WeChat: daixieit

MSc Management Course Unit Sustainability and Social Responsibility - BMAN 73102
Individual Assignment: ‘Strategy for a net-zero economy’


Develop a climate strategy roadmap for becoming competitive in a net-zero economy for a company of your choice, using tools and insights from the lectures, readings, and seminars

This assignment consists of an individual report.

The focus of the individual assignment is on strategies to become competitive in a net zero economy. Currently, companies across industries emit greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions that contribute to the climate emergency. In response to the societal pressure to tackle the climate emergency, many companies have set ‘net-zero’ targets. They have pledged to reduce their own GHG emissions as much as possible and offset the remaining emissions. To achieve a net-zero target, companies have to implement a turnaround strategy which drastically reduces their carbon footprint. Such a turnaround strategy can involve innovation, acquisitions and divestments, or investments in carbon offsets.

In your report, you will analyse a company’s carbon footprint and propose a strategic roadmap for becoming net-zero. You must analyse a company of your choice that has made a net-zero pledge, i.e. set a net-zero target, not near-term status (for a list see:

https://sciencebasedtargets.org/companies-taking-action). You will first analyse what the main causes are of the company’s footprint (e.g., energy use/transportation/manufacturing/supply chain/use of products etc.). Then, you will analyse the net-zero target and the strategic options that the company is proposing to achieve their target. Critically discuss their feasibility, using insights from the lectures, readings, and seminars. Finally, you will develop a strategic roadmap for how net-zero could be achieved while at the same time improving the company’s contribution to the  Sustainable Development Goals.

You must choose a new company, so NOT the one that you have studied in your group report or in the seminars. Make sure that you can find sufficient information on the carbon footprint and net-zero target and proposed measures to reduce GHG emissions.

You must choose a company for which you can find sufficient information (e.g., on company webpages, annual reports, press releases, etc.).

You should address the following four points in your report:

1. Describe the main causes of the company’s carbon footprint.

2. Explain why the company has set a net-zero target. Critically discuss the net zero target and the motivation for setting the target. Questions to consider could be
• How ambitious is the target and how realistic is its timeline?
• Is there a clear business case for setting a net-zero target?

3. Analyse and critically discuss the strategic options that the company has proposed to meet its net-zero target. You could consider the following questions:

• How achievable would the options be in the short-to-mid-term?
• How will their implementation affect the company’s competitiveness?
• Will the strategy contribute to the societal goal of creating a net-zero economy?

4. Develop a strategic roadmap for how net-zero could be achieved while at the same time improving the company’s contribution to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). A few suggestions to consider when trying to address this fourth point in your report:

  • Besides SDG 13 on climate action, which other SDGs are relevant for the company? How would becoming net-zero help or hinder achieving these other SDGs?
  • Could you identify some barriers that make it difficult for the company to achieve its net-zero target and would you have suggestions for how to overcome these barriers?
  • Regulations, shareholder pressure or competition might inhibit the companies from being more ambitious with their net-zero target. Can you provide measures for how to deal with such pressures?
  • Perhaps the company needs to collaboratively develop new technologies to achieve its net-zero target? What type of technologies should they consider? Which partners would be good?

Instructions:

You should use the lecture slides, course material and additional material (all available on Canvas). You are expected to use the concepts, tools, and frameworks that have been discussed in the lectures and seminars, particularly the roadmapping tool. In addition to integrating academic sources (i.e., the course material and additional reading material) in your report, you should use a variety of other sources that contain information on the net-zero strategy of your company, such as websites, annual reports, press releases, newspaper articles, trade and industry journals.

The maximum length of the report is 2,000 words, excluding references and appendices, and you may apply the 10% rule.

The report has to follow the guidelines set out in a separate document, which is called: ‘How to Write a Management Report’. These guidelines are available on Canvas.

You should consider the PGT marking criteria available on Canvas (see module ‘Course

Unit Information → Key Course Unit Information → Assessment and Feedback). They are used to mark the reports.

Weighting of marks for the Individual Assignment:

The mark of the individual report forms 70% of the overall mark for the course unit.

Due dates for the Individual Assignment:

The deadline for submitting the individual report in Blackboard’s Turnitin is 08 May 2026 at 2pm.

‘This assessment is subject to moderation’

2026-04-03