Claude Ouimet
Senior Vice President and General Manager InterfaceFLOR Canada and Latin America

The Journey to Sustainability: The Courage to Change is in All of Us

Industrialism developed in a different world from the one we live in today: fewer people, less material wellbeing, plentiful natural resources. What emerged was a highly productive, take-make-waste system that assumed infinite resources and infinite sinks for industrial wastes. In today’s world, this approach is archaic and in fact is endangering our prosperity, not enhancing it. That is why fundamental change is required and a focus on sustainability is so important.

Claude Ouimet, Senior Vice President and General Manager for InterfaceFLOR in Canada and Latin America, will present his company’s vision, Mission Zero, which is InterfaceFLOR’s promise to eliminate any negative impact the company may have on the environment by 2020. This mission embraces cutting-edge philosophies such as Life Cycle Assessment and Biomimicry. Claude believes that all of us, individuals and companies, have the power and courage to change, to be the change, and do something to help address the global environmental crisis. 

InterfaceFLOR, the world’s leading manufacturer of modular carpet, believes that there is a cure for resource waste that is profitable, creative and practical. InterfaceFLOR is on a mission to create a company that addresses the needs of society and the environment by developing a system of industrial production that decreases costs and dramatically reduces the burdens placed upon living systems. 

This vision has created a thriving company culture that embraces sustainability and the concept that entrepreneurial ability is the expression of the individuals’ capacity to sense an emerging reality and to act in harmony with it. Claude will discuss how this approach to employee empowerment has become the foundation of the company’s mission to become a truly sustainable corporation and is now a driver of employee attraction, retention and has helped galvanize InterfaceFLOR associates. 

In his presentation, Claude will share how InterfaceFLOR has embraced change and is taking action to become a sustainable corporation by leading a worldwide effort to design innovative and sustainable manufacturing and development processes. Claude’s mix of manufacturing, sales and marketing knowledge gives him a unique perspective for integrating sustainability throughout the InterfaceFLOR corporate culture.