Almost every company makes mistakes when they try to establish a green business program. Often the responsibility for improving the environmental performance of the company is added to the existing workload of an employee simply because they have spare capacity. Here we look at how hiring a dedicated environmental officer to oversee the establishment of an environmental program can reduce the likelihood of the company falling into four common pitfalls.
1. Not realising the time required to establish and implement a green business program.
Going green takes time and like many things the time and effort put in will determine the results. Having an employee dedicated to the establishment of the green business program ensures they have the time to investigate the issues, communicate with staff and train on the implementation of green business practices. A dedicated environmental officer will be able to provide an in depth assessment of environmental impacts by undertaking analysis and seeking input from others in the company. As a result the company will have a strategic environmental vision and greater capacity to get things done.
2. Not realising the company doesn’t have the right skill set within the business.
Depending on the size and nature of the business, it can be a complex task to analyse the environmental impacts and determine which green practices to implement. When appointing someone to oversee the environmental program, the company needs to examine the person’s skills and ensure they have the required skill set to do the job. Adding environmental responsibilities to an existing employee’s workload because they have capacity is unlikely to result in a successful green business program.
3. Not communicating with staff
Communicating with staff and ensuring they feel involved in the process of going green takes time but is vital if green business practices are to be implemented successfulyl. Often managers come up with bright ideas but do not give staff sufficient detail to make them buy into the changes. Without someone dedicated to communication and training, it can be difficult to guarantee that staff will receive relevant and regular information. Providing regular feedback to staff on progress of the green business program and ensuring there are open lines of communication also takes time.
4. Not realising the importance of records and documentation
Having your business go green will generate additional paperwork. Is there an environmental policy, a plan of action tied to the strategic vision and an assessment of the environmental impacts? Someone within the company needs to be accountable for creating and maintaining records required to support the environmental program.
As you can see there are a number of difficulties a company may experience on its mission to go green that could be avoided by appointing a dedicated person to oversee the green business program.
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