Prelims

Half Title Page

THE BATTLE TO DO GOOD

Endorsements

Praise for The Battle To Do Good:

Bob Langert is a pioneer of the sustainability field and an artful storyteller. The Battle To Do Good is a compelling narrative about an iconic company’s journey to be the best it can be for society and its shareowners. It is a new type of business book for leaders in the twenty-first century marketplace. The book is overflowing with great stories from the frontlines in sustainability and activism, as well as the back rooms of one of the most influential companies on the planet. A fun and informative read!

Dave Stangis, VP, Corporate Responsibility and Chief Sustainability Officer, Campbell Soup Company

The collaboration between McDonald’s and EDF 30 years ago changed the corporate sustainability landscape. Bob was there, and he stayed with the company for another quarter century, leading them through many sustainability initiatives. In The Battle To Do Good, he provides a first-hand account of the most interesting and impactful of those episodes in what amounts to a series of well-told stories interspersed with pithy takeaways and principles. Bob’s insights into the complex interactions with internal and external stakeholders are especially compelling. Anyone curious about the messy reality of leading meaningful change in corporations will find this fascinating, and because the stories amount to a series of real-world case studies, it is also ideal for college classes in sustainability.

Jonathan Johnson, Walton College Professor of Sustainability, Sam M. Walton College of Business, University of Arkansas; Founder and Chairman of the Board, The Sustainability Consortium

Transforming the world’s largest fast-food chain into a sustainability leader is not for the faint of heart, but Bob Langert embraced it wholeheartedly. His remarkable story is not just a great read about an enviable career, but a hero’s journey through the history of sustainable business and what it takes to be a leader, sometimes against the greatest of odds. Business students and corporate leaders alike should study and heed the lessons contained in these pages.

Joel Makower, Chairman and Executive Editor, GreenBiz Group

The Battle To Do Good really deserves attention and recognition considering how important corporate social responsibility is for businesses today. Utilizing this book provides the processes to manage such a daunting task. Bob Langert details step by step the journey he took. I loved this book!

Jan Fields, former President of McDonald’s USA

Having been a vegetarian since the 1970s, and having been sued (unsuccessfully) by McDonald’s because of our 1988 book The Green Consumer Guide, I loved slogans like “McCruelty” and “McSpotlight.” Plus, the high drama of the “McLibel” trial. But Bob Langert does us all a service by explaining the journey McDonald’s has been on as a result. Hard-Knock Nuggets indeed!

John Elkington, called the “Godfather of Sustainability,” co-founded SustainAbility in 1987, collided with McDonald’s in 1989, and is now Chairman and Chief Pollinator at Volans

Bob Langert is a true sustainability pioneer. The Battle To Do Good is a must-read account of how Bob led many changes that helped McDonald’s address big issues that leveraged its brand and market presence to achieve big results. Bob’s story has much to teach any sustainable business leader looking to make real change on crucial and complex questions ranging from beef, to animal welfare, water, and global labor conditions.

Aron Cramer, President and CEO, Business for Social Responsibility

The Battle To Do Good is an informative and insightful behind-the-scenes look at McDonalds’ incredible sustainability journey over the past several decades. Bob Langert provides us with a detailed and compelling narrative of how the company struggled and ultimately succeeded in partnering with NGOs and experts to dramatically improve environmental practices, animal welfare, and more. Langert weaves concrete lessons learned and helpful tips into each chapter, making this a perfect playbook for any student or corporate professional aspiring to help their company’s sustainability efforts. I recommend this book highly.

Liz Maw, CEO, Net Impact

Title Page

THE BATTLE TO DO GOOD

Inside McDonald’s Sustainability Journey

BY

BOB LANGERT

United Kingdom – North America – Japan India – Malaysia – China

Copyright Page

Emerald Publishing Limited

Howard House, Wagon Lane, Bingley BD16 1WA, UK

First edition 2019

Copyright © 2019 Emerald Publishing Limited

Reprints and permissions service

Contact: permissions@emeraldinsight.com

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without either the prior written permission of the publisher or a licence permitting restricted copying issued in the UK by The Copyright Licensing Agency and in the USA by The Copyright Clearance Center. Any opinions expressed in the chapters are those of the authors. Whilst Emerald makes every effort to ensure the quality and accuracy of its content, Emerald makes no representation implied or otherwise, as to the chapters’ suitability and application and disclaims any warranties, express or implied, to their use.

British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

ISBN: 978-1-78756-816-7 (Print)

ISBN: 978-1-78756-815-0 (Online)

ISBN: 978-1-78756-817-4 (Epub)

Dedication

This book is not endorsed by or affiliated with McDonald’s.

List of Figures

About the Author

Opens in a new window.

Bob Langert led McDonald’s CSR and Sustainability efforts from the late 1980s until 2015, when he retired. Currently he is editor-at-large for the GreenBiz Group, the senior sustainability advisor for The Context Network, and president of Mainstream Sustainability, his consultancy practice.

Acknowledgments

I thank George Macko who plucked me from supervising truck drivers and gave me the career I have since cherished. I am forever grateful to Shelby Yastrow, who saw enough in me to hire me into McDonald’s in 1991 and mentor me. My adventures at McDonald’s, and the thrill and extreme satisfaction of working on so many efforts that made the world a better place, is due to Shelby.

I thank McDonald’s. I worked with an amazing array of good, ethical, caring, talented, creative people at McDonald’s, including staff, owner–operators, and suppliers. In particular, I thank all the terrific people who worked on my direct team. Each one made major contributions to the McDonald’s CSR Journey. Each one had a passion to make a difference: Joe Megacz, Juana Sanchez, Samantha Sturhahn, Heidi Glunz, Kathleen Bannan, Jeff Hogue, Jenny McColloch, Brian Kramer, Kyle Schott, Jessica Yagan, Sheila Young, Townsend Bailey, Nathan Lester, and Sarah Whitmore.

I thank the people featured and interviewed ^* for this book. Each one is proof that one person with passion, persistence, and patience can create packaging that is more environmentally sound, make animal welfare standard operating procedure for the entire meat industry, save the rainforest, preserve wild fish, and have the audacity to put a stake in the ground and proclaim McDonald’s is going to buy sustainable beef.

I thank my editor Kelli Christiansen whose talent is superb. Her advice, insights, and outstanding editing expertise significantly improved my storytelling.

Thank you to Pete Baker, editorial director at Emerald Publishing, who believed that this story of The Battle To Do Good needed to be shared in order to help drive business leaders to what is the new norm of today and tomorrow: mainstreaming sustainability as fundamental to business success.

Most importantly, I am blessed with a great spouse, friend, and partner, Diane, who gave me the time and space to write this book, in addition to being a helpful first reviewer. To my daughters, Jenny and Laura, and their husbands, Greg and Michael, who give me such a fulfilling family life. And to my six grandchildren, who I hope live in a cleaner, brighter, safer, more sustainable society due in large part to corporate social responsibility and sustainability actions from companies large and small.