A commentary on LEMAN’s overall Sustainability Strategy, how the 2024 Sustainability Report reflects it, and what it means for future impact – by Sandhya Menon, Group Sustainability Advisor.
At LEMAN, we recently released our first sustainability report—a moment of pride, but one that doesn’t come with bells and whistles. There are no flashy graphs, no green-tinted infographics showcasing major reduction numbers. And that’s exactly how it should be.
Let me be very frank on the core premise of LEMAN’s first sustainability report. At this point, the focus of our report is not on the end result, but on laying the groundwork to get there. We are building the foundation for long-term sustainability—one that will allow us to report the kind of dramatic reductions we all want to see. Real change is not something that can be achieved by cooking up convenient numbers before the work is done—that’s a trap I refuse to fall into or drag LEMAN into. So, while this report may not have the loud fanfare, it has the substance.
Eyes on the Prize: Sustainability as a Core Metric
Sustainability is no longer an afterthought and in the eyes of everyone at LEMAN, it is core business. But change management at this scale doesn’t happen overnight. For over a century, LEMAN has tracked financial metrics with precision and clarity. We are all rightfully proud of that history, but we also recognize that sustainability metrics are just as vital to our business’s future—and deserve the same level of rigour. What I am most proud of regarding LEMAN’s first sustainability report is our collective commitment to lay a solid foundation of metrics and data, which will guide us toward ambitious but most importantly, meaningful targets.
Building the Right Data Infrastructure
The key to achieving meaningful sustainability is to decouple growth from environmental impact. This can only mean setting our eyes on absolute emissions reductions regardless of our continued business growth, as opposed to intensity reductions. And that means starting from the right place—creating a robust data infrastructure that we can rely on.
The road to reductions and cleaner operations starts with understanding our emissions footprint, and that requires visibility and accuracy. So, while we don’t have an infographic-worthy amount of flashy numbers to present yet, in 2024 we were gladly able to understand where we stand and work with the data. I cannot stress enough how challenging it is to establish reliable sustainability data—and how much I want to celebrate our organization for achieving this crucial first step. We now have a data architecture for our emissions, and it should not be presented as “basic” work—especially considering the amount of collaboration it requires.
This visibility is a critical first step, and now that we have the data infrastructure in place, we can begin working toward our targets with clarity and purpose. Establishing a clear emissions map and pinpointing our hotspots has prepared us to set impactful and realistic targets in 2025. These targets will not just be numbers on a page—they will be actionable goals that guide our every move and shape our strategy over time. And every year, as we work toward those targets, we’ll see consistent impact.
No Dent Without the Supply Chain: Procurement as the Next Focus Area
Our industry is high risk, especially the trucking sector. But hand in hand with that risk comes the biggest opportunity to decarbonize. And it is not something any of us in freight forwarding can do alone—we need our partners on board. At the same time, we in freight forwarding must acknowledge our influence in mobilizing our partners and take that responsibility. A single improvement incentivized by just one freight forwarder benefits the entire industry.
When designing LEMAN’s sustainability infrastructure, supply chain, and procurement were top of mind. LEMAN’s sustainability data foundation was set up to highlight the opportunities and action points in our supply chain. This is where we can make the biggest impact—not just on LEMAN’s metrics, but for the entire industry and ultimately the global emissions reduction effort.
The plan I am personally most eager to get started with is to aggregate the needs we have from our suppliers and to initiate a contract review that integrates our code of conduct. But—this will be just the beginning of a gradual, sustainable change management process. We will roll out a due diligence assessment to bring our suppliers on board, ensuring their participation in both data collection and the broader vision. Ultimately, at the end of this, we should all be able to see a joint purpose—one where sustainability is embedded not just in our operations, but across our entire supply chain.
Social: A Shining Star in Our Sustainability Report
One area where we can—and will—celebrate our progress is social sustainability. It’s a point of pride at LEMAN that our social metrics not only meet but often exceed industry benchmarks. While our social numbers shine in our sustainability report, I see them affirmed in LEMAN every day—in the halls of this company, in conversations by the coffee machine, and at the warehouse parking lot in the mornings.
Social sustainability, in my view, is one of the most challenging areas to measure. Measuring carbon emissions is straightforward, but it is much harder to measure the spirit of a company—the sense of purpose and belonging that drives people to do good work and dedicate their working hours to the planet and to each other. I have witnessed firsthand how our people have remained committed to each other’s well-being, even through tough times. And that dedication—both to the environment and to our shared values—is something that I hold dear on top of what the numbers say.
The social aspects of sustainability cannot be overstated, and LEMAN’s culture—Driven by People who genuinely care about making a positive impact—is a testament to that. It’s an area where we’ve seen real, tangible results before we even had the data to prove it.
A Humble Start, But One with Real Purpose
To anyone who expects sustainability reports to be full of green numbers and minus prefixes, I would kindly remind us all to pause and think. At least at LEMAN, this is not a marketing campaign; it is the endurance and longevity of our company—it is core business and we treat it with the diligence it deserves.
In 2024, we worked focused and hard to lay the right foundations. In 2025, we will nurture this work into our ambition: Quantified targets. And the years after that, we can report reductions with the confidence that they are the result of thoughtful, strategic action. This is a humble beginning, but it is the right one. We’re setting ourselves up for real impact, and that’s something I stand firmly on. The flashy numbers will come -and I can’t wait for them myself- but only when we have the right gear to back them up. Since 2024, I can confidently say we do.
Read LEMAN’s 2024 Sustainability Report
