Large companies spend millions, or billions, of dollars directly on
energy each year—and millions more indirectly, on supply chain,
outsourcing, and logistics costs. Yet outside the most energy-intensive
industries, the majority of firms approach energy as merely a cost to be
managed. This is a strategic mistake that overlooks enormous
opportunities to reduce risk, improve resilience, and create new value.
Today energy is climbing up the corporate agenda due to sweeping
environmental, social, and business trends, including climate change and
global carbon regulation, increasing pressures on natural resources,
rising expectations about corporate environmental performance,
innovations in energy technologies and business models, and plummeting
renewable energy prices. To respond to these shifts, companies must
develop a robust energy strategy. This article offers a framework
comprising five steps: Create a C-level mandate, integrate energy goals
into the vision and operations, track progress companywide, tap new
technologies, and engage stakeholders. These steps are not
revolutionary—but systematically applying them to a company’s energy use
is. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]