More cost-efficient than a waste basket
Speaking of banks, it’s interesting that the CNNMoney article cited a litany of New York banks and investment giants. For companies like these, initiatives like the one above won’t even break the proverbial bank: Each thermal storage unit costs $15,000 to $30,000.
This is ironic given the height of decadence before and even during the financial crisis. Recall that Merrill Lynch’s former head John Thain spent serious cash on office decorations. When one ponders $68,000 for a 19th-century credenza, $131,000 area rugs, and $87,000 guest chairs, heck, cost-cutting ice tanks are incredibly shareholder friendly. Could a leader who finds $1,500 trash cans reasonable be an excellent steward of long-term shareholder value? Of course, Bank of America Corp (NYSE:BAC), one of the ice tank users, bought Merrill Lynch during the financial crisis.
To give Bank of America Corp (NYSE:BAC) credit where it’s due, though, it has been actively investing in cleaner, greener solutions. The Bank of America Corp (NYSE:BAC) Tower at One Bryant Park is a leader, being the first commercial skyscraper to achieve the coveted top LEED Platinum certification. Just this year, it upped the ante on helping address climate change, lower natural resource demand, and push forward lower-carbon economic solutions. It’s now vowed to make a $50 billion investment over a 10-year period, given the company’s early achievement of its previous $20 billion plan of action.
According to Bank of America Corp (NYSE:BAC) CEO Brian Moynihan himself, “Environmental business delivers value to our clients, returns for our shareholders, and helps strengthen the economy.”
Propaganda versus profit
These are just a few examples of innovative yet simple ways huge companies are not only cutting costs, but also protecting the environment and crucial resources everyone relies on.
Many investors have no interest in pushing back against management teams on issues like pay; they consider these folks “the smartest guys (and gals) in the room” and the ultimate geniuses to run their companies, no questions asked. Of course, such investors aren’t listening when managements at behemoth companies make major moves in a sustainable direction.
The fact that even investing can be so terribly polarized by political word association is a shame. What’s most shameful, though, is that many investors are missing the real definition of the foundations for the strongest 21st century companies. That’s no way to build positive returns.
The article Ignore the Propaganda About This Profit-Boosting Factor originally appeared on Fool.com and is written by Alyce Lomax.
Alyce Lomax has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends Bank of America, Goldman Sachs, and United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS). The Motley Fool owns shares of Bank of America.
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