Ilse Jasso, Whirlpool's LATAM Media Manager
Ilse Jasso, Whirlpool’s LATAM Media Manager, explains that the company has been developing sustainability initiatives globally since the 1970s in the areas of production, manufacturing and the environment. She mentioned, for example, that the plants have Zero-Waste certifications, they have partnerships with NGOs such as Habitat for Humanity, and their entire innovation and research team is focused on how the technology they have, which they call ‘by humans for humans’, contributes to these consumer needs. “Beyond just having technology for the sake of having technology, it’s about technology with purpose.”
On a more regional level, since 2021, Whirlpool launched the Mission Water initiative, a program focused on the conservation of water resources through high-efficiency products. This effort began in Mexico and has permeated throughout Latin America, where the problem of water scarcity and distribution has been increasing, Jasso explains. It is made up of different communication initiatives in the US, Latin America and Brazil. “We see that there is a consumer need for satisfaction in a product, as well as a problem that we know exists and has been growing over the years,” she said. The latest edition of this platform is known as H₂OY.
Among the main challenges that Jasso sees in the company’s sustainability issue is related to the behavior of the water resource. “We know that this is a very sensitive issue. We know that users are becoming more aware of this resource. So our challenge is to continue building as a company and to continue aligning what we are implementing in the sustainability department at a global level”. She explained that initiatives permeate, not only from the communication side, but also from the needs that are gathered from the user’s side and that are transmitted to Whirlpool’s engineering, product innovation and quality areas.
Another challenge she mentioned is how to continue to evolve in communications, and in this the development of technology will be very important, to use it to their advantage. “Not only in product, but also in being able to become more efficient in monitoring and measuring advertising. We don’t even know what is going to happen five years from now with artificial intelligence, so we can start building from there and use it to deliver the right message to the consumer and receive consumer information to continue working on it”.
