Simon-Kucher recognised as global leader for sustainable travel

Global consulting firm Simon-Kucher has been recognised as one of the top worldwide companies for sustainable business travel. The firm was only one of two German-origin companies to demonstrate clear reduction goals in the ranking from European NGO Travel Smart.

As pressure mounts on the corporate world to do more to combat climate change, the travel intensity of the consulting industry has come under intense scrutiny. Prior to the pandemic, the movement of consultants accounting for as much as 80% of a management consultancy’s carbon footprint. While the coronavirus lockdown shifted much work to the virtual sphere, firms are steadily sending their consultants back out to client sites – but the sector is determined not to see its emissions creep back up with that.

One of the firms leading that charge is Simon-Kucher – which has been recognised by Travel Smart as one of the top fifth of global companies when it comes to sustainable business travel. In 2021, the German-origin firm sent the guideline to its 2,000 professionals worldwide, stating employees had to use the train instead of plane for trips below a certain amount of hours or kilometres, among other policies. But in the last year, it has further bolstered its green credentials – leading to an improved rating from Travel Smart.

Founded in 2022, Travel Smart is a campaign encouraging fewer business flights, shifting to high-speed rail, and more virtual collaboration meetings will save money for your business – along with showing corporate leadership in the climate crisis and meet investor expectations. Its 2024 Travel Smart Ranking evaluates global companies’ efforts to reduce corporate air travel emissions, assessing their commitment, emissions, and reporting, with ratings ranging from scores of A to D.

Of the 328 global companies evaluated, only 57 companies had set targets to reduce business travel emissions. Simon-Kucher distinguished itself among these companies by demonstrating a clear dedication to reducing aviation’s environmental impact and travel emissions, securing a B rating, and placing it in the top 20% of global companies ranked. This was an improvement on last year, enabled by it introducing more ambitious goals to reduce their business travel, anticipating a reduction of 25% by 2030.

Anne Rupp, Global Head of ESG at Simon-Kucher, commented, “Simon-Kucher is constantly making efforts to ensure that we are on right path to reducing travel emissions. Our commitment to disclose and cut travel emissions, plus our SBTi commitment, demonstrates our dedication to climate action. We strongly believe that the shift from air to rail travel and investment in new technologies are the key to reduce emissions.”

The achievement follows recognition late in 2023, when Simon-Kucher was named as a frontrunner in the Rail First assessment. Then, the Germany-headquartered consulting firm was also highlighted as a leading example of a company that has successfully shifted its travel from airlines to railways as a means of curbing emissions.