Building a Sustainable Future: Holcim's Award-Winning Strategy and My Latest Case Study

Just as Holcim North America has been recognized by the Slag Cement Association (SCA) for their achievements in Sustainable Concrete Awards, I'm thrilled to announce the official publication of my latest case study in the esteemed The Case Journal: "Concrete Steps to Cementing Sustainability: Holcim’s Environmental Strategy."

This timely study delves into how Holcim, the global leader in the cement industry, strategically navigates sustainability imperatives through a structured set of initiatives and policies. It examines the critical challenges Holcim faced at a time when climate change, resource scarcity, and shifting stakeholder expectations converged, fundamentally reshaping the company’s business strategy through the lens of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) principles.

The recent recognition from the SCA, where Holcim was named a winner for three projects in the categories of Lower Carbon Concrete and Durability at their awards ceremony on April 2, 2025, in Toronto, underscores the significance of their sustainability efforts explored in this case study. 

The study is informed by secondary research, my personal experience and industry insights gained during my time teaching in Spain—a country with a significant cement industry—and invaluable discussions with my colleague Arnaud Blandin, an ESG expert with extensive knowledge of the cement industry’s sustainability challenges, particularly in Asia.

I've found this case study to be a valuable tool in my MBA strategy classes, consistently generating stimulating discussions among participants.

To explore the findings further, you can access the case study here:

https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/tcj-05-2024-0161/full/html

For proper citation:

Viardot, E. (2025), "Concrete steps to cementing sustainability: Holcim’s environmental strategy", The CASE Journal, Vol. 21 No. 3, pp. 717-742. https://doi.org/10.1108/TCJ-05-2024-0161

Strategically yours!