Jean Horning : “Committing as a mission-driven company”

As the CEO of an Mission-Driven Company, what does it entail ?

For Citeo, it means reconnecting with the pioneering spirit of its beginnings. It’s in our DNA to invent new approaches, new governance models, a different relationship with corporate responsibility and its impacts. For me, it’s about aligning once again my dual path as a CEO and as a societal actor. Concretely, this transformation has led me to engage within a community of pioneers, the Community of Mission-Driven Companies: I met and welcomed them at Citeo even before we started working concretely on our new status. I wanted to immerse myself in their vision, benefit from their initial feedback, and debate with them about all the possible implications for the company I lead. From the two-year adventure that transformed us into a mission-driven company, I retain the power of dialogue, and I made it the driving force of our transformation, first with all the employees of Citeo, involved at every step, then with our governance and with all our -numerous- stakeholders.

Reducing waste in a COVID-19 period conducive to packaging, is it a challenge ?

The challenge is at the heart of Citeo’s mission, as our purpose is to engage and support all economic actors in producing, distributing, and consuming while preserving the planet. The health crisis we are going through presents us with many challenges: continuing to support these frontline workers who are the actors of selective collection so that it continues everywhere in France, continuing the development of recycling channels while some user sectors like the automotive industry are suffering, supporting companies seeking to reduce their packaging and increase their recyclability in a difficult economic context, addressing consumers’ demand for responsible consumption by supporting sorting and proposing new uses like reuse. The circular economy of packaging and paper, like others, faces the current crisis, and we hope it will emerge strengthened, but we cannot let our guard down.

What are your projects and challenges for the coming year ?

In 2021, several crucial topics will progress, including the one that matters most to me: the necessary complementarity of solutions to reduce the environmental impact of packaging and paper. With our 100% Solutions strategy, we are working 360° to develop new recycling channels, especially for plastic packaging, to develop sorting behavior with its simplification and increased consumer mobilization for responsible behavior, to find effective solutions for reuse and combating litter. Among our major milestones this year, there will be the development of reusable packaging standards, the development of new consumer information for packaging, and a barcode scan on our Sorting Guide app, the publication of the first comprehensive study of the needs of actors combating litter, and our roadmap for biodiversity.

Do you think the circular economy will be one of the cornerstones of the ‘famous world after’ ?

The circular economy is a cornerstone of our world, here and now, however difficult and unpredictable it has become. Faced with the urgency and magnitude of needs, we cannot give up on reconciling the environment and the economy.