How Cisco Harnesses Circular Design for Sustainable Products

Date: October 27, 2025
Author: Georgia Collins
Source: Manufacturing Digital

Overview

Cisco has achieved full integration of circular design principles in 100% of its new products and packaging, meeting a key sustainability goal for its 2025 fiscal year. This milestone was recognized with the 2025 Reuters Global Sustainability Award for Circularity. Over six years, the firm embedded circularity into its product lifecycle, spanning design, materials, manufacturing, and end-of-life considerations.

What is Circularity?

Circularity is a sustainable production and consumption model aimed at eliminating waste by keeping products and materials in use as long as possible. It replaces the conventional ‘take-make-dispose’ approach with strategies such as reuse, repair, refurbishment, and recycling to close the resource loop.

Cisco’s Circular Design Approach

Leadership & Training

Mary de Wysocki, Cisco’s Chief Sustainability Officer, has led these efforts, emphasizing that circular design not only reduces waste but also extends product life, enhances efficiency, and increases security for customers. Over 7,000 Cisco employees underwent extensive circular design training to embed these principles across departments.

Circular Design Evaluation Tool

Cisco developed a proprietary, web-based Circular Design Evaluation Tool to systematically assess new products and packaging against 25 Circular Design Principles. A minimum score of 75% is required for product release approval, ensuring consistent sustainability standards.

Governance Structure

To maintain program oversight and integrity, Cisco implemented a governance model with steering and audit committees, aligning efforts across business divisions and fostering accountability.

Environmental and Financial Impact

• Webex Room Bar: Removal of foam packaging and use of 55% recycled plastic has saved over 14,515kg (32,000 pounds) of material annually.
• Catalyst 9000 Product Line: Eliminating oil-based paint resulted in cost savings of approximately US$9 million between 2020 and 2025.
• Environmental benefits from paint removal include reduction of around 318 metric tonnes of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and 3,400 metric tonnes of CO2 equivalent emissions.

Data Infrastructure & Reporting

Cisco created a Sustainability Data Foundation to consolidate and govern sustainability metrics, including circularity implementation and product carbon footprint. Progress is transparently reported via Cisco’s Purpose Reporting Hub and annual Purpose Report.

Future Outlook

As digital infrastructure grows, especially with AI technologies, Cisco’s circular design strategy helps optimize critical raw materials and promotes sustainable innovation. Mary de Wysocki views this achievement as "just the beginning" and plans to refine the Circular Design Principles using ongoing feedback. Cisco continues to engage engineers, marketers, and suppliers in teardown events to deepen sustainable product innovation.

Conclusion

Cisco’s comprehensive circular design strategy harmonizes environmental responsibility with business value. Through rigorous evaluation tools, governance, and employee engagement, Cisco sets a scalable example for manufacturers aiming to embed circularity and sustainability into their operations.

Tags: Cisco | Mary de Wysocki | Circularity | Circular Economy | Sustainability | ESG | Technology | Packaging | Waste Reduction

For detailed Cisco sustainability reports and resources, visit their Purpose Reporting Hub.

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