Green Benefits That Benefit Everyone
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To quote an African proverb, “if you want to go fast, go alone, if you want to go far go together”.
This couldn’t be truer when it comes to one of the biggest threats to humanity – climate change. There is plenty of evidence to prove the urgency of why everyone should play their part. Unless we come together as individuals, businesses and countries, we will fail. Individuals need to act now. Businesses need to act now. Governments need to act now.
So when it comes to the environment, how do we align business strategy with reward strategy? Simply put, it’s a challenge. With so many things to consider, to get it right, first you need buy-in from key business stakeholders. To get all the key stakeholders on board, you need a strong case for change. Often, to build a strong case for change is to prove your return on investment. And so it goes.
We can all agree that when it comes to our collective desire of becoming an environmentally friendly society, most of us are aligned.
Below are some examples of how your business can play its part in protecting our planet, while still focusing on reward.
Education and Business Environment
Education has an important role to play in securing our future. You can empower your employees by educating them on environmental issues, and then supplying the tools to make a change. We all know the saying “practice what you preach”. Does your business environment live up to the expectations you’re setting for employees? Here are some practical ideas on what you can do to make meaningful changes.
- Arrange recurrent workshops and educate employees on environmental matters. These could be informal sessions such as ‘lunch and learn’ – or more formal workshops run by experts.
- Organise Company sponsored events and activities such as cleaning beaches, rivers, parks, etc. These types of company events not only create a community feel but also educate your people on the real impact we’re having on the planet.
- Can you build ‘greener’ offices that will make your employees proud? Examples could vary from installing solar panels, collecting and repurposing rain water, to providing a small vegetable patch or ensuring there are plants around the office.
- Do you currently offset emissions created by you, your people and your partners? If not, look into providing a scheme for employees to offset their emissions and offer matching contributions.
Policies and Practices
Organisational policies set the tone for employees to follow. This is a great opportunity to review your current green policies and amend them, or create new ones! Policies are a way to show your employees (future and existing) that you’re serious about being an environmentally friendly company.
- Review all your business travel policies. 2020 showed us that we can work well virtually. Will we need to travel as much for business in the future? Now is the perfect time to consider and review your business travel policies.
- How about creating ‘Green Days’ – similar to charity days but specifically for environmental causes.
- Link your recognition programmes with green policies. Polices which encourage, and reward, employees for their contribution to green related initiatives.
Benefits!
The final element of your green strategy is - benefits. What tangible options can employees select to contribute to the planet in their own way? Here are some of our favourite ideas:
- Do you have ethical investment options for employees? Not sure? Review your Pension and Workplace ISA default funds (or providers) and explore ethical investment options. Make sure it’s easy for employees to make the switch to ethical funds, if they wish.
- Encourage employee engagement with responsible commute friendly options. The Government is encouraging greener modes of transport such as Cycle to Work, Car Salary Sacrifice and Season Ticket Loans. Consider Carbon Offsetting for those unable to take part in the above benefits.
- Offer matched employee donations for ‘green’ charities. Additionally, you may want to consider matched donations for all charities, to encourage employees to give back.
- Subsidise or provide access to subscription options such as, plants and gardening subscriptions or 'imperfect' fruit and vegetable boxes that would otherwise go to landfill. This encourages good habits, as well as helping the planet.