The Growing Impacts of Climate Change on Business Operations

Climate change is an unfolding crisis that will increasingly disrupt business operations and bottom lines. More extreme weather, higher temperatures, rising sea levels and other impacts will challenge companies across sectors. This article provides an executive summary of how climate change will affect facilities, supply chains, workforces and more. Read on for a high-level overview, and click here to download the full 10-page analysis as a PDF report.

Key impacts covered in the report include:

• More frequent weather disruptions to facilities and transport routes. Investments in resilience planning are needed.
• Supply chain vulnerabilities will grow as climate impacts suppliers, logistics networks and input availability.
• Workers face health and safety risks from heat, disease and disasters. Protective policies must be expanded.
• Changing customer preferences and scrutiny of business climate performance will accelerate. Sustainability demands are opportunities.
• Insurance costs and liability risks will climb as climate effects worsen. Proactive risk mitigation is essential.
• Damage to infrastructure critical for operations will increase, affecting productivity.
• Labor pools may be constrained by climate migration and health impacts. Workforce redundancy helps buffer losses.
• Investors and regulators are demanding climate risk disclosure and strong risk management.
• Urgent emissions reductions worldwide are imperative to avoid the very worst scenarios. Businesses must lead in the transition.

With upfront preparation, companies can weather the storm of climate impacts through strategic adaptation and resilience building. But action must be taken now before intensifying physical, financial and social effects make business as usual impossible.

Download the full analysis "Ten Ways Climate Change is Impacting Business" here for an in-depth exploration of how climate change will transform each aspect of business operations in the years ahead.

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