Engaging with sustainability is important from a wider global perspective in terms of environmental and social impact. However, it is also important from a business perspective. Sustainability actions and changes within your organisation can positively impact your overall business by reducing costs, attracting new customers, bolstering your reputation, and offering opportunities for innovation.

Getting Started

To make a real impact with your sustainability strategy, you will need buy-in from all levels of your organisation. Building a culture of sustainability starts with the executive team committing to taking action and communicating their intentions. Once these targets are set and shared, it is integral to make all team members feel as if they are part of the journey and that their input is listened to and valued.

Town Hall Style Meeting: A great first step to fostering this culture is hosting a company wide sustainability town hall. Plan a meeting with all of your team members to announce that the business is committing to making changes and taking action on sustainability. In this meeting, make sure to leave time for questions and brainstorming. This will help you to gauge interest in sustainability, gather possible ideas, and make sure everyone is aware of your commitment.

Green Team: Next, put together a green team, also known as a sustainability committee. Whether you are just starting out or if you already are working towards targets you have set as an organisation, having a green team can make a big difference. Green teams are usually made up of passionate volunteers from different departments who are leaders in creating a more sustainability conscious working culture and taking internal action. They meet regularly to identify opportunities for improvement and to develop actionable solutions and implementation plans.

Monitoring and Communicating Your Sustainability Journey

As you continue on your sustainability journey, it will be important to have in place a sustainability strategy with specific targets and commitments. This strategy is a road map that will help you keep on track and to have the biggest positive impact. Part of this strategy needs to include plans for monitoring and communicating your progress.

Establish SMART Goals: When creating your sustainability strategy, establish specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART) goals and outline the steps required to achieve these targets, along with responsible parties and deadlines. By doing this, you will be better able to monitor your progress as you will have specific metrics to track over time. Make sure you set a baseline for your targets against which to measure your progress!

Communicate your commitments and progress, both internally and externally: This is a vital part of your sustainability journey. At this point, you have a roadmap for your business, targets for sustainability, and know how you are going to measure progress. Now, you need a plan to clearly and transparently communicate your targets and actions in an accessible way. This can be done through a regular report, team member town halls, a public webpage, social media posts and more!

By anticipating the impacts of climate change and getting ready now, you are putting your business at a competitive advantage, as you will be more prepared for the future. On top of this, taking action as a business and advocating for broader action can mitigate the worst disruptions in the future. Customers and retailers are searching for more sustainable options and want to buy from organisations that are truly taking action. This will add to your competitive advantage and help you to reach new markets.

About The Author

This article has been written and shared with our Knowledge Exchange by ENSO. “ENSO is the all-in-one solution for businesses to easily embrace sustainability, win new customers, inspire employees, assist in earning new certifications and make a positive impact on the planet and their community. Currently working with over 100 businesses, their approach helps align your business practices with sustainable values, and provides you with the tools and insights needed to achieve measurable and meaningful impact and communicate your results.”