How Crop Circle helped embed sustainability into the culture and daily decision-making of a global oil and gas major
As part of a new company strategy, sustainability became a core priority for a global oil and gas major. What followed was a fundamental delivery challenge.
For Production & Operations (P&O)—the upstream and downstream businesses—teams needed to understand what sustainability meant for their roles and, more importantly, how it should change the way work was done. Regions, functions, and businesses were now expected to factor sustainability into decisions, performance discussions, and outcomes alongside traditional operational and financial measures.
This work followed the development of a new P&O narrative that helped restore confidence and pride in the business. With that foundation in place, the next challenge was execution: translating sustainability from strategic intent into daily practice.
The organization needed a way to embed sustainability into how work was planned, measured, and delivered—so it became part of everyday decision-making rather than remaining a strategic aspiration.
Crop Circle worked as an embedded partner alongside operational leaders and a dedicated sustainability culture team responsible for integrating sustainability into the fabric of the organization.
Together, we focused on translating sustainability from strategic intent into everyday practice—working across regions, functions, and businesses to help embed sustainability into existing systems, tools, and ways of working.
Rather than introducing new initiatives, the emphasis was on integration: supporting the organization in weaving sustainability into how performance was discussed, progress was tracked, and success was defined—so it became part of daily decision-making across Production & Operations.
Integrating Sustainability into Existing Performance and Reward Systems
Rather than creating new mechanisms, the focus was on integrating sustainability into systems employees already used to understand priorities and success.
Working closely with internal teams, sustainability considerations were embedded into:
These integrations sent a consistent signal: sustainability was not an add-on—it was part of how the organization defined and reinforced success.
Sharing Real Examples to Enable Adoption
Communication played a critical role in helping sustainability take hold—not as messaging, but as a mechanism for learning and replication.
We supported the identification and sharing of real examples from across P&O, including:
Sometimes these were fully developed initiatives. Often they were small, practical ideas that proved effective in one part of the business and could be replicated elsewhere. Making these examples visible helped sustainability spread through the organization in grounded, practical ways.
Making External Reporting Relevant Internally: Fast Facts
A major focus of this phase was helping employees connect to the company’s annual sustainability report in a meaningful way.
While the report played a critical role externally, its length and format made it difficult for internal engagement. To bridge that gap, we supported the creation of a multi-year internal campaign called Fast Facts.
Each year, aligned with the release of the sustainability report, Fast Facts:
Over time, Fast Facts became a trusted mechanism for translating external reporting into something employees could connect to and use.
Celebrating Tangible Progress: The Methane Measurement Campaign
To reinforce momentum, the organization placed strong emphasis on visible, tangible progress.
One of the first sustainability aims to be fully realized focused on installing methane measurement at every major oil and gas production facility by the end of 2024. To support this effort, a dedicated methane measurement campaign was launched during the fourth quarter of the year.
The campaign:
As each region came online, the map updated in real time, allowing employees across the company to see collective progress unfolding. What could have been a technical milestone became a shared, company-wide moment—demonstrating tangible progress and reinforcing confidence that sustainability commitments were being delivered.
As sustainability became embedded into everyday work and cultural systems, the impact within P&O was measurable.
Over the course of this phase:
Leaders also reported greater consistency in how sustainability was discussed across regions, stronger confidence in progress being made, and increased belief that sustainability was becoming part of how the business operated.
This work succeeded because it focused on embedding sustainability into the culture the organization already had.
Rather than introducing new tools or initiatives, the approach:
By meeting people where they already were, sustainability became part of everyday decision-making—and part of the culture itself.
We use cookies to analyze website traffic and optimize your website experience. By accepting our use of cookies, your data will be aggregated with all other user data.