Beyond Green

Over the last several years, more and more businesses of all sizes and types have incorporated green principles into their operations, supply chains, and workforce cultures. Companies across all industries are adopting corporate responsibility programs that incorporate green business practices (practices that are concerned with and support environmentalism and preserve environmental quality), as well as socially responsible practices (practices that contribute to the welfare of society and are not solely devoted to maximizing profits). By adopting green concepts, businesses are lowering costs and eliminating waste.

Corporate responsibility has moved well past the “movement” stage to become standard operating procedure for many businesses. Most companies have at least instituted entry-level measures such as creating green teams, monitoring and improving energy efficiency, and implementing recycling programs for paper, cans, and bottles. So, what’s next?

Having reached this critical juncture in the green road map, many companies believe they have done all they can to be better environmental stewards and good corporate citizens. What else could they possibly do? Plenty—in fact, the following list of ideas can help businesses who want to go deeper in their green efforts.

Reduce Your Footprint with Technology
There are many affordable technology tools to help you with your green pursuits.

• Cloud computing applications that allow for mobility and remote access to reduce the carbon output of commuting employees.
• Software programs already in use at your company, such as enterprise resource planning software (ERP) or business intelligence (BI) software, can help track company waste reduction savings and expenses resulting from your green initiatives by adding an “environmental data stream.”

Corporate Responsibility Benefits Recruitment and Retention of Employees
Today’s workforce, especially those employees just out of high school or college, prefer to work for companies that are engaging employees in sustainability practices and doing good for their communities.

• When posting jobs, be sure to mention the green measures you’ve incorporated into your operations and culture, and incorporate information about your green initiatives into the new-employee orientation process.
• Even with a minimal budget, you can establish incentives for green programs, such as offering mass transit reimbursement or subsidy; and offering socially responsible/green investment options for 401K plans can go a long way to increase job satisfaction among staff.

Additional Low-Cost Initiatives
There’s a greater emphasis on discarding electronic waste or, eWaste, in a responsible manner. Cottage industries have popped up to harvest this waste. Instead of holding onto that old BlackBerry that’s hiding in employees’ desk drawers, sell it to an eWaste commodity broker. To find brokers near you, visit ewaste.com or greentechassets.com. This is also a secure way to dispose of old technology that may still have confidential information lurking in the corners of the hardware, as many services offer data protection. Also consider donating larger electronic waste, such as computers, to a local nonprofit. You can claim the donation as a charitable contribution and feel better knowing the material will not end up clogging a landfill, but instead be repurposed.

Another low cost way to boost your responsibility program is by networking with those that you do business with. Make sure that you ask all of your partners/vendors what they can do to help you enhance your green initiatives. If your current employee 401K plan doesn’t have a green investment option, ask your provider for one. Other vendors/suppliers to seek green help from may include office supplies providers, IT providers, and janitorial and travel services.

Tell Your Green Story
Once your green initiatives are in place, tell your employees, customers, vendors, community, and other key stakeholders about them. Build a green page on your website that’s easy to find and clearly outlines the mission. Use various social media platforms to spread the word, such as a blog, YouTube video, or Facebook page. Consider producing a corporate social responsibility (CSR) report outlining your goals, results, and how you are measuring your efforts. The CSR report should be produced on a yearly basis and shared with key stakeholders and the public.