According to Ørsted Chief Executive Mads Nipper, success criteria of companies have changed over the years from merely creating growth and jobs.

Other parameters, Nipper says, must also get attention ­ especially those concerning sustainability, reports Danish newspaper Berlingske.

"I have no respect for those who fail to take the necessary steps," the CEO tells the media, adding that a successful company is one that creates value both for shareholders and other significant stakeholders, for instance, personnel and host societies ­ ideally, the whole world.

While companies have basically striven to create economic growth and jobs, an increasing number of businesses have been obliged to acknowledge the importance of other concerns when measuring success.

Companies should be run without damaging society or the planet, and the trick here is to improve efforts within, among other things, climate and equality, Berlingske writes.

"I'd claim that almost all companies can either create new markets or a new business by looking differently at sustainability," Nipper says.

Such developments can be seen among both Ørsted and Maersk. For example, the power company divested its oil and gas assets in 2017 to instead bank on renewables, especially offshore wind.

The Danish shipping major is both trying to cut greenhouse gas emissions and create a market for low-carbon logistics.

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