German automaker BMW has moved its Asia sustainability function from corporate affairs to sales following a restructuring of its regional management team this month.
The rejig sees corporate affairs and sustainability director Preeti Gupta shifting to a new role as sales channel and network development director. She will retain her role as sustainability lead for Asia.
Based in Singapore, Gupta’s role will cover all of BWM’s importer markets across Southeast Asia, South Asia and the Pacific Islands. In the coming months, BMW will evaluate if the sustainability role will need to be shared as the company looks to widen its focus on the function, Gupta told Eco-Business.
The management changes were made due to the need to “rethink business processes” following the appointment of a second BMW dealer in Singapore, the start of local production in Vietnam and rapid business growth in Indonesia, according to BMW Group Asia managing director Lars Nielsen.
In her new role, Gupta will work to integrate the company’s “sustainability first” mindset into her department as BMW aims to roll out more sustainable dealerships and implement sustainable practices across the company, she said.
Gupta has led sustainability as well as corporate affairs for BMW for more than seven years. She joined the company from public relations firm Text 100 in 2016, having spent her entire career in PR and marketing before pivoting to sales.
She told Eco-Business that sustainability is anchored in all divisions of BMW Group, which aims to be “the most successful, most sustainable premium manufacturer for individual mobility”.
She adds that sustainability has been parked in corporate affairs to date because BMW believes “there’s an ongoing need to be transparent with both internal and external stakeholders [by communicating sustainability progress]”.
BMW has committed to “total climate neutrality” by 2050. By 2030, the world’s 6th biggest carmaker is aiming to reduce its Scope 1 and 2 emissions – or its direct and indirect emissions – by 80 per cent from 2019 levels.
BMW claims to have the car industry’s most sustainable supply chain, having lowered its emissions per vehicle produced by more than 70 per cent since 2006.
Measures taken to cut its production footprint include using 100-per-cent renewable electricity, only buying cobalt and lithium for battery cells directly from certified mines in Australia and Morocco, and offsetting residual emissions so that all of its sites are “net carbon neutral”.
