Taking Life Cycle Management Mainstream: Integration in Corporate Finance and Accounting

Abstract

What does it take for life cycle management (LCM) to capture the attention of the financial community? LCM experts face a window of opportunity as technological progress and economic developments lead to greater interest in mainstreaming the sustainability agenda and integrating it in business decision-making. This includes new approaches to the assessment of impacts on Natural Capital, environmental management as well as annual corporate reporting. Having highlighted these, this chapter employs a Green Business Case Model to define ways in which life cycle applications can be employed to link with core financial indicators of special interest to investors. It describes three hypotheses to illustrate where LCM tools can best make a difference, positively affecting core financial value drivers. The author suggests three hypothetical pathways to capture the attention of investors, linking environmental life cycle costing (LCC) and financial, activity-based costing. These are complemented with company case examples. It draws lessons from past work on the business case as well research on environmental versus financial life cycle costing (LCC).