On Friday 2 December, Mike Barry, Director of Marks and Spencer's Plan A scheme, visited Shiplake College to give a talk to Sixth Form pupils. All Year 13 pupils attended the highly informative talk, arranged by Mr Alex Hunt. Mike covered several topics within the talk, including the environmental and economic impact and responsibilities of large companies.
Marks and Spencer is one of the retailing giants of the British high street; an iconic brand since its inception in 1984. M&S boasts stores across the globe, and a slew of celebrity names linked to the retailer. The international company has branched out from just clothes into the cosmetic and food industries. Alongside creating employment, with over 852 stores in the UK alone, the retail giant has an ethical conscience. In 2007, the company launched an award-winning initiative: Plan A. The drive behind the creation of this strategy was to increase the environmental sustainability of the business, and address the key social and environmental challenges facing M&S today and in the future. The strapline – ‘because there is no Plan B’ – underlines the brand’s commitment to running an ethical and environmentally friendly company. Mike spoke to the Sixth Formers of the key intentions of Plan A; to become carbon neutral; to send no waste to landfill; to extend sustainable sourcing; to help improve the lives of people in their supply chain, and to help customers and employees live a healthier lifestyle. Mike discussed what’s really happening to our planet, as companies, economies and the human population grow. It was a stark view of the extent of the impact humans are having upon the natural world.
The Sixth Form pupils were impressed upon that they are the leaders of the future: Mike commented that ‘the single most important thing for being a successful leader is to have strong values.’ Pupils also learnt key aspects of developing a career in business: having people skills, being inventive, understanding climate change, working well as part of a team, being creative and adopting strong values. It was a fascinating talk for all pupils, as it touched upon many different topics, as well as the world and businesses at large. Mr Hunt thanked Mike for giving up his time to come and talk to Shiplake pupils, adding: ‘it has been a pleasure to have Mike speak to us and I’m sure you’ve all learnt something useful and perhaps something you wouldn’t have thought about before. It’s been great to see how involved our pupils have got with this and hopefully we’ll all think a little more carefully about our own impacts on the world!’