PwC China’s 2025 Sustainability Report makes a clear case for sustainability as a business reinvention lever: cutting emissions, reshaping services and strengthening supply‑chain relationships to unlock growth and resilience.
For COOs and sustainability officers across Asia, the report offers practical signals on how to integrate decarbonisation, workforce strategy and responsible technology into operating models.
“As we outline in our report, reinvention is central to our strategy for leadership and growth,” said Hemione Hudson, chair and CEO, PwC China.
The firm reports a 44% reduction in carbon emissions versus a FY2019 baseline and a 72% reduction in Scope 1 and 2 market‑based emissions — outcomes that show rapid operational change is possible when treated as a strategic priority.
Key takeaways for operational leaders
- Embed sustainability into core services: PwC is reworking its advisory and assurance offerings so sustainability work becomes a revenue stream and a risk‑management tool. COOs should expect clients to demand sustainability‑by‑design in products and procurement; building these capabilities internally can become a competitive differentiator.
- Make data and AI responsible foundations: PwC has increased investment in AI while emphasising data privacy and cybersecurity safeguards. For Asia’s COOs, this means coupling digital transformation with governance: invest in data lineage, model documentation and vendor risk checks to avoid regulatory and reputational risk as AI is embedded in operations.
- Drive supplier decarbonisation: PwC reports that over 16% of its suppliers (by emissions) now have validated science‑based targets (SBTs). Douglas Johnson, director, corporate sustainability, PwC China, noted the supplier focus as a multiplier: “By strengthening these relationships, we hope to see a multiplier effect along the supply chain.” Operational leaders should prioritise supplier engagement programmes and build SBT adoption into procurement KPIs.
- Reconfigure the workforce for resilience and inclusion: PwC’s internal metrics show women comprise 64% of employees and hold 59% of management roles; nearly half of new partner admissions were women. Such diversity outcomes can improve decision‑making and operational resilience. COOs should link talent pipelines, reskilling and flexible working policies to sustainability goals.
- Quantify social impact and risk: PwC donated RMB 2.78m and reached 15,000 beneficiaries through FY25 initiatives. Josene Xing Zhou, corporate sustainability leader, emphasised community programmes as part of corporate stewardship and licence to operate — an important consideration where social licence and local stakeholder relations matter across Asia.
Practical steps for Asia’s operational leaders include setting multi‑year transition plans with measurable targets, integrating sustainability criteria into capital allocation and procurement, and ensuring AI and digital investments include privacy, security and explainability requirements from the outset.
The PwC report provides both evidence and template: treating sustainability as a structural driver of service innovation and operational change, not merely a compliance cost, helps firms manage climate‑related risk while creating new market opportunities in the region.
