“We must value more than just financial performance”

Fabrice Bonnifet is the Director of Sustainable Development & QSE (Quality, Safety, Environment) at Bouygues Group, the President of the College of Sustainable Development Directors (C3D), and a Board Member at The Shift Project. Co-author of the book The Contributive Company, he explores more sustainable and responsible economic models and the potential to reconcile business with planetary limits.

What does the subtitle of your book with Céline Puff-Ardichvili, Reconciling Business Models with Planetary Limits, mean?

We need to redefine success criteria for companies to go beyond financial performance alone. This involves highlighting regenerative models that place ecological debt reduction at the core of their activities. We should value nature as we do financial assets, recognizing that preserving it is key to any real, lasting growth.

Could you explain the importance of conserving virgin resources?

Absolutely. It’s critical to create value while keeping a constant stock of resources. Enlightened leaders must be willing to redesign their business models within the planet’s limits. We need to relearn how to “make money” not only without destroying the world, but even better, by actively working to restore it. The linear economy model has led to excessive waste; it’s time to establish a high-quality usage economy that meets real needs while conserving resources.

How much of our future choices are influenced by dreams?

We need to collectively build a new vision of living together—an ideal based on social justice and collective well-being. The dream of a lighter ecological footprint for the common good is within reach. A tree, for example, is a natural air conditioner; plants, a remedy for anxiety. We must rediscover our ability to marvel at the beauty of life because we only truly protect what we love.

How can businesses address the climate crisis, and what advice would you give to start this essential change?

The challenge is to make change appealing. Happiness doesn’t come from ownership but from using what we need when we need it. More sharing, more pooling—these are paths forward. Profitability and environmental responsibility aren’t mutually exclusive: new indicators should measure social and environmental practices, making these aspects levers for performance. By redefining the values they project in their communications and strategies, companies can blend creativity with circularity, paving the way toward a contributive and responsible economic model.

What advice would you give for transforming the organization itself?

Transformation begins with questioning existing processes. Employees should ask: where do our resources come from? Can we prioritize recycled materials? Training teams on these issues is essential, as collective awareness is the foundation of sustainable evolution. Innovation is the lever that will make this transformation accessible and competitive. It’s time to reinvent our performance criteria and the ways we share value. Circular leadership is the way forward: create a shared language, adopt a long-term vision, set priorities, and celebrate every achievement.