Interface shakes up sustainability governance

Interface has announced changes to its sustainability governance structure, including the elimination of its Chief Innovation and Sustainability Officer role and the promotion of its Head of Global Sustainability Strategy to the executive leadership team.

The flooring company announced the departure of Chief Innovation and Sustainability Officer Nigel Stansfield and the elimination of his role in an SEC filing this week.

An Interface spokesperson explained to CSO Futures that  the change was “a step in our multi-year One Interface strategy to build strong global functions, accelerate growth, simplify operations, and continue to lead in design, performance, and sustainability”. Stansfield has been in the company for 40 years in a variety of executive roles and is ready to “wrap up his career” when he leaves Interface on September 1, 2025. His duties will be divided between other executive team members.

Aligning strategic sustainability and product stewardship teams

At the same time, the company has promoted Liz Minné, Head of Global Sustainability Strategy, to its expanded executive leadership team to ensure that sustainability remains central to day-to-day business decisions. She and her team now report to David Foshee, VP and General Counsel, and another member of the executive leadership team. 

This restructure also seeks to more closely align the strategic sustainability team with the group focused on environmental and product stewardship, which also reports to Foshee, the spokesperson added.

Moreover, Jay Lanier, Head of Market Sustainability, now reports to Jim Poppens, Chief Commercial Officer, bringing the team working with customers to help them design sustainable flooring solutions closer into the commercial organisation “where they have the most influence and impact”. 

Interface’s carbon negativity goal

Interface says it remains committed to its goal to “be carbon negative by 2040, and to one day be a regenerative enterprise, as our Founder Ray Anderson envisioned”. 

The company, which posted US$1.3 billion in net sales in 2023, has set 2030 science-based targets to reduce absolute Scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas emissions by 50%, reduce absolute Scope 3 emissions from purchased goods and services by 50%, and reduce business travel and employee commuting emissions by 30%, all from a 2019 baseline year.

In 2023, GHG emissions reductions stood at 27% for Scope 1, 30% for Scope 2 and 35% for Scope 3 purchased goods and services, compared to the base year. Interface is due to release its 2024 impact report in the coming days.

In 2024, Interface announced that it would repurpose investments into carbon offsets towards innovation projects for direct carbon reductions and carbon storage, discontinuing its ‘carbon-neutral floors’ and ‘carbon-neutral enterprise’ programmes.

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