Posts Tagged ‘Energy’

The Opportunities of Sustainability

Wednesday, April 6th, 2011

Sustainability, green, social responsibility, and corporate citizenship are all descriptors used to explain the initiative of businesses doing good while doing well. In our experience, developing a strategy of sustainability is a commitment to all people, all processes, and the environment while building profitable businesses.

Business leaders are becoming more knowledgeable about how sustainability impacts their businesses but there is still a large learning curve that needs to be addressed. In a recent ASQ research study (American Society for Quality) 40% of the respondents noted they are only somewhat familiar or not really familiar with the concept of sustainability.

Depending on your business, the opportunities for enhanced business by embracing a strategy of sustainability can be multiple. In a recent study by Boston College Center for Corporate Citizenship and the Hitachi Foundation (released in 2010), they verified several business opportunities generated by sustainability initiatives. It is the only research to provide a comprehensive view of small, medium, and large sized US businesses.

  • 72% of the companies surveyed are reducing costs through improved materials efficiency.
  • 58% are manufacturing or sourcing domestically/locally.
  • 53% are increasing brand awareness as “green” or socially responsible.
  • 52% are designing and offering sustainable products/services.
  • 50% are providing customers with more information about products’/services’ social and environmental impacts.
  • 48% are offering more energy efficient products/services.
  • 46% are providing frontline employees with business training to broaden and improve commercial awareness.
  • 22% are using sustainability as a market differentiator.

Many of the early adaptors have been large organizations and often their adaptation was forced by customer and stakeholder pressure, regulations, or sometimes both. However, the sustainability initiative is fast taking hold in the small to mid-sized organizations for similar reasons.

Case Study 1: Berea College located in Berea, Kentucky; founded in 1855; employs 485 people. The college focuses on providing a strong academic program as well as a holistic approach to social and environmental issues. Some of their early initiatives included:

  • Developing a multidisciplinary sustainability and environmental studies program
  • Developing an eco-village
  • Developing sustainable agriculture

Due to these initiatives and the college’s long-term commitment to sustainability, Berea College used 52% less BTU’s of natural gas in 2009 over its 1999 usages, and provides 15% of its cafeteria food from its own farm and local producers.

Case Study 2: Johnson Financial Group, founded in 1970, is a full service financial services company and employs 1,267 people. A privately held company, they thought showing their customers that they had a commitment to keep operating costs down in tough economic times was a message of strength. Their sustainability campaign focuses on improving operations while generating social, environmental, and economic success. Their campaign includes:

  • Reducing transportation
  • Development green buildings
  • Reducing energy use
  • Education
  • Paper reduction and recycling
  • Waste reduction

Their results are clear. Johnson Financial has reduced energy consumption at its corporate headquarters for three consecutive years. One project saved 500,000 kilowatt hours of electricity, 17,000 terms of natural gas, and eliminated more than one million pounds of carbon dioxide per year.

Case studies abound of companies who have embraced the concept of sustainability, whether by choice or by force, and have found the strategy to be a sound business move.

Sustainability is a sound investment and not just another way to drive up cost and diminish profitability. It is about looking at the big picture and doing the right things for the right reasons, while growing a successful and profitable organization.

Tammy A.S. Kohl is President of Resource Associates Corporation and a founder of The Institute for Sustainability, www.theinstituteforsustainability.com. For over 30 years, RAC has specialized in helping businesses achieve high levels of excellence and success by adopting sustainability as a critical success factor of organizational success. Learn how at www.resourceassociatescorp.com or contact RAC directly at 800.799.6227.

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Decisions, Habits, and Attitudes

Wednesday, December 23rd, 2009

Every day we are bombarded by decisions … what to do, what to eat, what to wear, what to read, what to watch or listen to, what to buy, what to say … the decisions are never ending.

The never-ending process of making decisions continues throughout your workday. Every time an employee asks you a question like, Can I leave early to go to my son’s lacrosse game, or Mary just called off sick and we need her part of the project today, what do we do? You are making decisions that impact your team or department’s results.

Fortunately, most decisions require very little conscious thought. In fact, we actually made many of the decisions a long time ago, and we’re simply executing them now out of unconscious habit. For example, we spend little or no time deliberating what driving route we take to work, what errands need to be accomplished over the weekend, or what clothes you throw on after getting home from work.

The emotional intensity of decisions depends upon the perspective of the decision maker. To a corporate executive, a decision that involves millions of dollars can seem routine, while the president of a local service club might agonize over luncheon arrangements for 15 members. A married couple might spend considerable time and energy deciding what color to paint their living room, while a marketing executive might design packaging for an entire product line in a very short time. Your attitudes and habits influence your actions and thoughts. You can improve your decision making skills by becoming aware of the existing attitudes and habits that have shaped your decisions in the past.

Take a few moments to list some of the important decisions you made in the past five years. Evaluate the quality of those decisions.

Did they produce the results you wanted? Are there any decisions you would change?

Next examine your decision making style. Did you tend to make the decisions impulsively, or did you take time to examine all of the facts? Did you involve others, or did you decide alone? Did you make the decision in a timely manner, or did you procrastinate? Did your decisions align with your goals, or were you swayed by external influences and other people’s opinions? Were there any decisions on your list that you made against your better judgment? Perhaps you had a hunch about what you should do, but you disregarded it. How did those decisions turn out? Write down your observations. Can you identify the habits and attitudes that either helped or hindered your decision making in the past?

Over the years your personal experiences and your daily application of formal knowledge have given you a sixth sense for what will and will not work in given situations. Intuition can serve you well in decision making. Research has revealed decisions based on instinct are frequently more accurate than those based strictly on factual analysis. Your best decisions will draw upon both the logical and the emotional facets of your personality. Listen to your inner voice and be sure your decisions pass the test of plain common sense.

Passing the common sense test is an important component of making a sound decision. However, for more complex decisions there is a proven decision making process which includes six key steps. We will share more specifics on the decision making process in a future post!

Tammy A.S. Kohl is President of Resource Associates Corporation. For over 30 years, RAC has specialized in business and management consulting, strategic planning, leadership development, executive coaching and youth leadership. For more information visit www.resourceassociatescorp.com or contact RAC directly at 800.799.6227.

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