Green Chemistry Directors are being hired at many consumer facing brands and retailers.

I get excited when a job title contains “Green Chemistry” because it shows companies are proactively addressing chemicals in products and supply chains. Perhaps these roles used to exist under Product Stewardship or Quality. But to name the role “Green Chemistry Director” and have them oversee the chemical management strategy seems like a good idea to me.

The main responsibility of the Green Chemistry Director is to develop a vision and implement a viable chemicals management program. This must include initiatives to identify and prioritize the phase-out of hazardous chemicals and replace them with safer alternatives.

Why are companies hiring this role now?

Companies are getting ahead of legislation and other pressure points by taking proactive steps to protect their brand reputation and reduce risk from:

• Legislation including the CA Safer Consumer Products program which requires companies to find safer alternatives to chemicals of concern.

• NGO campaigns such as the GreenPeace DeTox Campaign, targeted at the apparel and footwear industry, is asking for the elimination of hazardous chemicals from products and supply chains by 2020.

• Consumers who are questioning what chemicals are in the products they buy and consume.

• Social media initiatives by individuals who create a lot of action and potential damage for brands. Many petitions are forcing companies to eliminate certain chemicals from their products.

• Retailers such as Wal-Mart and Staples, are asking their customers to eliminate hazardous chemicals in products. Wal-Mart recently established their Sustainable Chemistry initiative.

Is there a business reason to hire Green Chemistry Directors?

Absolutely!

A chemicals management program quickly reduces legislative risk and protects brand reputation. Other benefits include:

• It is the right thing to do.
• It creates safer consumer products made in cleaner supply chains.

Impacts to your business

Questions to Consider:

• Do you have someone responsible for a chemicals management strategy?
• Do you have a process to identify safer alternatives?

For help with any issue associated with chemicals, contact Amanda Cattermole at (415) 412 8406 or Amanda@cattermoleconsulting.com. We help develop powerful solutions to protect your company and brand reputation. The result is safer products manufactured in cleaner supply chains.

Tips and Insights contains information to help you make informed chemicals management decisions. Each post highlights a particular topic and includes questions you may want to consider as you build your program