Reference no: EM133641834

TurnItAroundTurbines (TIAT) became one of the first companies to produce fully recyclable wind turbine blades. TIAT's production of fully recyclable wind turbine blades signals a significant move towards achieving the company's sustainability goals and demonstrates industry leadership. TIAT has been scrambling to find sustainable end-of-life solutions to match the rising demand for their technology. Although they now have produced 100% recycled blades, the problem of decommissioned TIAT blade disposal is a focus of management. It is common knowledge within the global wind turbine industry that by 2050, 43 million tonnes of decommissioned 80-metre-long turbine blades would reach their end of life and need to be managed through the global waste stream. However, TIAT sees this problem as an opportunity to lead the global solution for the disposal of blades. TIAT knows that the blades currently installed globally are only 85% recyclable, the last 15% of the process is challenging due to the non existance of technology to separate the resin exterior binding from the glass and carbon fibre exterior and filled interior. The current disposal practice for decommissioned wind turbine blades globally is to bury them in large landfill sites. The CEO of TIAT is receiving significant pressure from the company's internal and external stakeholders to change their current practice of burying the blades. The current TIAT practice does not address the companies sustainability goals. Due to the first decommissioned TIAT blades requiring disposal within the following 24 months, time is running out.

Questions

Management and Leadership Thinking

1. Describe reflective thinking. Use the case study as an example.

2. What is critical thinking and, what role does critical thinking play in enterprise leadership? Use the case study to explain your answer.