There’s more to it than money…
Last Friday I was editing the nine interviews I have carried out with CSR/environment executives for book#2, The Green Executive. Reading through all nine in quick succession, it struck me how few of them were driven primarily by cost savings. While cost is a factor, the majority say that an overriding factor is company image. Building a trustworthy, progressive and friendly image will enhance sales, win contracts and attract and retain good staff. All of this will improve the bottom line. But there’s more than this – the interviewees talk about bringing their values to the workplace and greater personal satisfaction that they are doing something for the greater good.
So we have to remember two points:
1. The financial benefits to going green are much wider and greater than cutting utility and raw material costs. This has to be understood and factored into investment decisions (the next edition of The Low Carbon Agenda will address this in more detail).
2. We should not forget the deeper, philosophical questions about who we are and why we do what we do as soon as we enter our workplaces. We should not feel, or be made to feel, guilty for doing the right thing.
2 Comments
Leave your reply.