The example that follows is a hypothetical illustration of
the innovative application of flexible budgeting to sustainability
performance measures by Bacardi Limited.
The company begins by measuring the relationship
between the amount of a sustainability KPI relative to the
activity level in a base year. For example, say Bacardi
measures CO2 emissions at a Scotch whisky distillery in
the base year, 2010, and finds that it produced 10,000
liters of pure alcohol (K-LPA) while emitting 20,000 units
of CO2. Thus, for 2010, the rate of emissions would be
two units of CO2 for each thousand liters of pure alcohol.
At the end of 2011, the company combines the actual
level of activity—let’s say 12,600 K-LPA—with the rate