Furlenco: Sustainability starts within: Flipkart & Furlenco on building a climate-conscious culture

Climate change is no longer a future threat - it's a present crisis that demands immediate and enduring action from all sectors of society. Businesses, particularly large organisations with significant environmental footprints, have a vital role to play. Yet beyond carbon offsets and sustainability reports, one of the most effective ways for companies to tackle climate change lies within: embedding climate goals into company culture. In conversations with Nishant Gupta, Head of Sustainability at Flipkart, and Ms Sthuthi Murugan, Head of Human Resources at Furlenco, we explore how two very different companies are taking meaningful steps to create climate-aligned cultures from within. Their stories reflect the broader opportunity for leadership across industries: to align environmental priorities with business objectives by empowering employees, enabling sustainable action, and embedding accountability into everyday decisions. "Embedding climate goals into company culture begins with ownership and consistency," says Nishant Gupta of Flipkart. "It's not just at the strategic level, but in daily operations too." Flipkart's sustainability philosophy is built on aligning environmental priorities with broader business goals - not as an add-on, but as a core value. According to Gupta, this alignment starts with leadership commitment: a clear message from the top that sustainability isn't a side project but an integral part of the organisation's identity. This leadership-driven model reflects a key finding from a 2023 Deloitte report, which shows that companies with executive-level sustainability champions are twice as likely to exceed financial and ESG targets. As organisations grapple with increasingly complex environmental regulations and stakeholder expectations, this type of leadership will be essential. But what does cultural alignment look like in practice? For Flipkart, sustainability is baked into daily operations - from last-mile logistics to warehouse management. Gupta shares several initiatives that make climate-conscious behaviour "easy, actionable, and measurable." These include: Transitioning to electric vehicles across its logistics network to reduce transport-related emissions. Implementing advanced water conservation systems like STP zero-discharge facilities and rainwater harvesting at corporate sites. Reducing food waste through real-time tracking and composting at warehouses - with organic waste converted into manure for landscaping. Optimising energy use and minimising freshwater consumption by reusing STP-treated water for non-potable applications. Each of these initiatives represents not only environmental wins but also opportunities for cost savings, resilience, and brand differentiation. Importantly, they are designed with long-term systems thinking in mind - ensuring sustainability is not project-based but process-driven. This mirrors a global trend. According to the CDP (formerly Carbon Disclosure Project), over 60% of major companies now assess environmental impact at multiple levels of their operations, signalling a shift from reporting to real integration. Yet as Gupta points out, cultural change doesn't come from systems alone - it requires employee engagement. "To nurture the mindset of building a greener future, we're initiating week-long Earth Day campaigns, upcycling workshops, and zero-waste living sessions," he shares. "While one of the biggest challenges is converting awareness into consistent action, enabling dialogue and shared ownership can create the strongest cultural shifts." This participatory approach to sustainability - where employees are invited to act, reflect, and innovate - helps bring purpose to the workplace. It's a concept supported by data from PwC's Global Workforce Hopes and Fears Survey 2023, which reveals that 71% of employees want their work to contribute to something meaningful, including climate action. Climate as culture, Not just compliance While Flipkart has focused on operational innovation, Furlenco has taken a different but equally powerful path: building a human-centred climate culture through internal emotional alignment. "At Furlenco, a climate-aligned company culture means building an environment where people feel seen, supported, and inspired to grow - emotionally, professionally, and personally," says Sthuthi Murugan, who leads HR at the company. Under the umbrella of Project Care360 and their employee value proposition - Empower, Elevate, Evolve - Furlenco prioritises emotional climate as the foundation for sustainable behaviour. The logic is clear: if employees feel trusted, heard, and empowered, they are far more likely to take ownership of environmental and social outcomes. Sthuthi is clear that sustainability is not a parallel track to innovation or revenue growth - it is what enables them. "A positive internal climate powers everything else," she says. "When people feel supported and inspired, they bring their best to the table - leading to better ideas, stronger collaboration, and faster execution." This synergy between people and planet is increasingly reflected in business literature. McKinsey's 2023 report on Sustainable Organisation Design finds that companies that embed environmental and social goals into HR and people strategy see a 2.3x increase in employee engagement and retention. At Furlenco, leadership behaviours serve as cultural anchors. Performance evaluations measure not just what results are delivered, but how - including collaboration, trust-building, and empathy. "Leaders are the custodians of Furlenco's values," says Sthuthi. "They prioritise well-being and ownership, and we hold them accountable through continuous feedback and people-centric conversations." Building a climate-aligned culture isn't without challenges. As Sthuthi points out, "Navigating change - from a wrong hire to decisions that didn't land well - can shake the vibe." But the company has developed a strategy for recovery: address disconnection early, double down on core values, and create space for honest reflection. "Bringing the mojo back is always a conscious, collective effort," she says. "Once it's back, it sticks - because it's real." Gupta echoes a similar sentiment: "Culture is built over time. When sustainability is woven into how people work and think, it naturally becomes part of the organisation's DNA." Steps for leaders: Making climate culture real Based on the insights from Flipkart and Furlenco, here are six actionable steps for leaders seeking to embed climate goals into their company culture: Lead with intent: Make climate goals a strategic priority, not just a CSR initiative. Signal top-level commitment and allocate leadership roles accordingly. Operationalise sustainability: Move beyond policies into process design - from green supply chains to net-zero buildings and water reuse systems. Make It measurable: Integrate climate-related KPIs into team goals, performance reviews, and business dashboards. Empower employees: Create space for staff to lead climate initiatives, volunteer, learn, and innovate. Build purpose into daily roles. Foster dialogue and storytelling: Share wins, losses, and journeys. Use Earth Day campaigns, internal newsletters, and learning modules to bring sustainability to life. Measure Culture, Not Just Carbon: Assess how employees feel about their role in climate action - through surveys, pulse checks, and feedback loops. Beyond the company walls, this cultural approach to climate leadership has ripple effects. Customers are increasingly drawn to brands with strong environmental values, investors are rewarding companies with robust ESG cultures, and regulators are moving from voluntary frameworks to mandatory disclosures. In Australia and New Zealand, for example, mandatory climate reporting will begin for large organisations by 2025 under the new sustainability disclosure standards. This makes the cultural groundwork companies lay today essential for tomorrow's compliance - and long-term competitiveness. Moreover, climate-aligned cultures are proving more resilient. According to BCG, companies with strong sustainability cultures were 1.8 times more likely to adapt quickly during COVID-19 disruptions - suggesting that environmental values strengthen business agility. Sustainability as an organisational identity If there's one takeaway from the leadership at Flipkart and Furlenco, it's this: climate goals cannot thrive on posters or policies alone. They require deep integration into the emotional and operational fabric of the company. And that begins with culture - not just what a company does, but who it is. As Nishant Gupta puts it, "Organisations that are in their early days of this journey should lead with intent, act with clarity, and engage their people in meaningful ways." Sthuthi Murugan adds, "For employees to truly feel the climate, you have to get to the roots - understand what connects them, and what gives them a sense of purpose." By building cultures that care - about people and the planet - companies don't just stay relevant in a changing world. They shape the future.