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 Being green in business makes great financial sense. With more and more consumers becoming aware of environmental issues, it makes sense to follow the trend and not only increase your bottom line but create a positive impact on the environment. Imagine the impact if every business made a conscious decision to reduce consumption, reuse consumables and recycle waste.
You may not think that your small business has a big impact on the environment, but remember that small businesses are the largest employer in the world. With this in mind a business can increase their yield with the implementation of steps towards being green. These often involve small changes in operations that reduce costs and improve profitability and attract the environmentally aware consumer. The business carbon footprint and the need to reduce emissions are increasingly becoming mainstream issues.
Businesses are under increasing pressure to disclose their contribution to climate change. It is important that all businesses begin to measure their carbon footprint and identify opportunities to reduce it. This can improve your marketability and bottom-line.
To start the process, initiate these three simple steps:
- Measure your emissions
- Identify possibilities and implement opportunities for reducing your emissions (and costs), and offset what is left
- Promote your initiative to your supply chain, clients and the broader community.
Well-designed and effective environmental management systems can improve operational efficiency and increase the level of excellence in all businesses, regardless of their size. Once your business has collected the data, the next step is to look at ways of generating income from the initiatives your business implements. Obviously this will vary from business to business, however generally most businesses will enjoy increased efficiency and cost reductions.
A major benefit to most businesses is the team. Having everyone involved in a common goal or target enhances the teamwork among staff regardless of their position. Setting the example from management shows employees that they can make a difference in their job; a common conversation builds teamwork. As the green movement is becoming increasingly mainstream, we find ourselves doing things in our businesses that we have never done before and that possibly no one has ever done before.
Be on the lookout for these ideas and strategies. They are the things that will give your business a point of difference and provide an income. Many of these strategies will be picked up by your competitors, so be prepared for this to be an ongoing process within your business.
The best part is that our planet benefits from us all trying to get the green edge on our competition. While you undertake assessments of your carbon footprint be mindful of the costs. It’s easy to get carried away hence increasing financial pressure on your business. With government legislation looming, many of these measures will become law so now is the time to start on your plan.
Have a look at staging the process over the coming years to avoid lump sum costs. A long term strategic GREEN plan will help to identify the major costs and provide the opportunity to budget for them or conduct the work at times when your cash flow is high.
Sourced: Horizon magazine
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