Pioneering Sustainability
The Center for Sustainable Global Enterprise celebrates 20 for 20 honoree Agata Smeets, MBA ’11, head of environment and product sustainability at Gap Inc.
Fueled by a relentless commitment to society and the planet, Agata Smeets, MBA ’11, helps integrate environmental and social stewardship thinking into decision-making processes and investments at Gap Inc., where she is head of environment and product sustainability.
She’s one of the 20 for 20 Notable Alumni honored this year in celebration of the 20th anniversary of the Center for Sustainable Global Enterprise (CSGE) at the Cornell SC Johnson College of Business.
At Gap Inc., Smeets creates and executes strategies to advance the multinational retail clothing brand’s climate, water, and product sustainability commitments. “Being selected for this alumni list helps me see the forest for the trees,” she says. “It’s a huge honor, especially as my work is not necessarily glamorous—it’s a lot of advocacy and frustration with breakthroughs every so often. My day-to-day life is very hectic due to raising a young family; this was a great reminder for me to stop and realize that I’m doing okay.”
Learn more about Smeets in the Q&A.
Sustainability as corporate culture
Q. Describe the biggest challenge you encountered as you built your career in sustainability and how you overcame it.
Smeets: It is frustrating to see sustainability treated as a nice-to-have instead of a crucial part of strategy for business continuity and growth. Sustainability is often siloed into its own department with a common perception of being full of out-of-touch idealists, versus successfully integrated into a company’s strategy and ways of working. A challenge for me early on was not being able to gain enough traction in sustainability work, specifically because the field was still nascent, and projects were few and far between. It was only when I pivoted to focus on supply chain strategy that I worked my way into focusing on sustainability more fully.
Q. Envision the future of sustainability in your industry. What trend excites you and gives you hope for the future
Smeets: There is a profound shift happening in how consumers, especially younger ones, engage with—and what they expect of—apparel. The age of fast fashion is waning as people realize the impact that fashion has on our environment and communities. There is also a lot of legislation in the not-too-distant future that will change how we consume and dispose of textiles. I think it’s exciting to participate in the innovation that will accompany this change and to see the change happening up close.
Q. Describe a project or initiative related to sustainability that you are particularly proud of and how it has influenced your role, company, industry, or community?
Smeets: When I was living in Hong Kong working for Gap Inc., I worked on many initiatives that aimed to reduce water consumption in our supply chain. I helped make the business case to our CEO to co-invest with a strategic partner to build an innovative waste treatment plant and a water innovation center based in Gujarat, India. To build the case, I had to price out the risk that water posed to our supply chain, which was surprisingly difficult because water is still so underpriced globally. We partnered with our suppliers beginning in 2018, but the COVID-19 pandemic delayed implementation of our plans. We finally launched the center this past January. Seeing it come to life after all these years has been a great moment, and we are just getting started making sustainable improvements in our supply chain.
Career advice
Q. Can you share any insights or lessons learned that may inspire students who want to be sustainability leaders
Smeets: You don’t need to pursue a role that has sustainability in the title or is directly on the sustainability team. All roles can contribute to sustainability strategy and practices. In fact, traditional roles are often much more important and impactful in making change. Often, it is those teams that own decision-making and strategy setting for the business, while the sustainability professionals act more as advisors. My advice is to be open to these non-sustainability experiences since you never know where you’ll end up or what opportunities will present themselves.
Q. What do you do to recharge?
Smeets: Now that I work in the office for part of the week, I typically commute by electric bike. There’s nothing like the rush of fresh air and movement in the morning and at the end of the day to clear your head and gain perspective. Any day I don’t have to drive the car is a good day.
The role of education in sustainability
Q. What role do you see business schools and universities playing in advancing sustainability initiatives, and how can alumni contribute to this effort?
Smeets: I think the biggest thing that business schools and universities can do is to help bridge the dichotomy between sustainability and business. Often in MBA core classes, there is no mention of the negative social or environmental externalities of corporate decisions, or maybe it’s a footnote. Thinking about and teaching strategies for business continuity and growth must include a lens of social and environmental stewardship as a key aspect of decision-making. Business schools should embrace this perspective.