With a promising career in the automotive industry, where she competently circumvented the adversities of a still very male-dominated segment with the support of her bosses, Saori Yano took over the Sustainability area of Amazon’s Operations in Brazil in 2021. She currently plays a crucial role in conducting projects aimed at solutions with a lower environmental impact and reducing the company’s net carbon emissions.
Graduating in Engineering and Administration, Saori says she spent 23 years at Toyota, where she joined as an intern. “I was the first employee, in the first factory, and I had a very basic job,” she recalls. She says that her manager was the one who encouraged her to go further: “Everything you learn will go towards your assets,” she says, who decided to change course during the pandemic.”I was already working a lot with construction work, wastewater treatment, and the opportunity and interest in this area arose. In the automotive industry, environmental impacts are very important,” she says. She says that, despite the machismo in the sector, she always looked for leaders who inspired her. “It made a big difference.”
The pandemic was a moment of review. “I decided to give myself a chance, but I had imposter syndrome, that fear of having worked in just one company. But luck comes to those who are prepared and 4 months later I was at Amazon.”
One of the company’s most ambitious goals is to be zero carbon by 2040, ten years ahead of the Paris agreement. “Growth brings this responsibility, it’s not a simple area, it’s not quick, the solutions don’t exist, we’re building this path,” says Saori.
The ESG approach represents three fundamental pillars that guide the practices of responsible institutions. It comes from English and stands for Environmental, Social and Governance respectively. At Amazon, there is a person responsible for each of these areas, which, according to Saori, brings many benefits. “I can focus on the environment, it speeds up my initiatives, we gain integration with teams from other countries,” she says.
Working with climate issues, Saori says, is not so tangible. “Amazon is the largest buyer of renewable energy in the world. It’s certainly having an impact, but you don’t feel it at the moment,” she says. But it’s part of the company’s culture and growth strategy. There is also the social impact, and the areas work in synergy within the company, with affinity groups, in which Saoria eventually acts as a tutor.
“We also have sustainability and social impact ambassadors, as well as a program to develop women, with female mentors, to enhance careers. There will be 11 mentors and 55 mentees. We have an environment of color collaboration,” says the executive, who today leads programs and always works in synergy with other areas of the company.
“It’s important to have people linked to sustainability in other teams, it brings a sense of belonging. My goal is to bring information and awareness to the whole team,” concludes Saori.
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