Workplace corporate social responsibility is more important today than ever before, and it comes in various forms, from product donations to employee volunteer days and eco-friendlier work practices.
It’s beneficial for companies to evaluate their initiatives to determine the ways they can have a positive impact on their community and as a result, attract and retain new talent to their organisation.
Here are some suggestions of how leadership can find new talent by boosting their workplace corporate social responsibility, take responsibility for their corporate actions and contribute to a more sustainable society.
Get staff on board with recycling
Businesses should strive to keep waste to a minimum wherever possible, to reduce how much they’re sending to landfills. An effective way to achieve this is by encouraging members of your team (and the wider organisation) to recycle. “The more staff that are on board, the more this is adopted throughout the entire business”, explains waste recycling business Countrystyle Recycling, “rewards and recycling incentives are a great method to encourage employees to recycle. Not only does this enable you to reach recycling goals but gives a sense of competition throughout the business”.
Take advantage of your monthly/quarterly meetings and communicate the importance of improving your corporate sustainability credentials. Discuss in an open forum what would motivate them to recycle and experiment with a range of different schemes to help implement an effective sustainability model in the workplace.
By adopting and implementing ethical recycling processes into your team’s workflow, it will encourage everyone to only print where necessary, place recycling points around the site and donate office furniture or equipment when it’s no longer needed.
Promote green commuting
Regardless of the size of your team, it’s likely that a proportion will still look to commute to work each day (even after COVID-19). For larger businesses, in particular, this could result in a larger carbon footprint for the company as a whole.
Businesses that are keen to adopt a greener mindset can encourage both new and existing staff to choose alternative commuting methods where possible, whether that’s walking, cycling or car sharing.
Many companies have had great success improving company culture with bike-to-work schemes and incentives, whether it’s set up in-house or you use a third-party company to offer these benefits to your staff.
Create a green team
Appointing a few members of your team or even just an individual within the company to innovate new ideas on how the company can become more eco-friendly is a great way to empower your team and introduce new initiatives.
Where possible, you should appoint people from different teams to gain fresh perspectives and unique ideas, as these individuals will be able to see the sustainability problems the business faces from different angles, whether it’s marketing, packaging and logistics, or operations.
Not only will it help your company adopt eco-friendly practices but it contributes towards a positive brand image and shows that the business takes such issues seriously – which will encourage potential new talent to show an interest in working for your business if their ethics and values align.
Carry out an energy audit
All companies rely on energy to some degree, but how well your workplace uses that energy is important when it comes to sustainability. An energy efficiency audit can help you assess areas of your office where you can save on energy, reduce your carbon footprint and save on utility bills in the process.
As part of this process, you can see if there is equipment or technology that your environment is using that can be switched to an energy-efficient alternative if necessary, as well as potentially switching to a renewable energy provider.
Other (seemingly) small but effective changes could include:
- Utilise energy-efficient light bulbs around the office
- Rainwater storage for your office building
- Encourage water-saving practices in the kitchen and restrooms
- Restrict the use of air conditioning and only use when windows and doors are not open
- Utilise natural light to its full potential
- Review hand dryers and consider switching to more energy-efficient options
- Implement a recycling strategy
Engage your team by giving them the freedom to come up with their own ideas and initiatives for improving the sustainability of the business. They will likely be more engaged and motivated to stick with the changes being implemented if they have an investment in the cause.
Consider your suppliers
It makes sense that your business aligns with others in terms of the standards and policies you’ve adopted. After all, part of workplace corporate social responsibility is considering how your business can do better, so why shouldn’t that extend to your company’s business partners and suppliers?
Don’t be afraid to show initiative and ask the following questions to senior management:
- Do they have similar environmental goals and values to your company, such as reducing waste or packaging?
- Are their services aligned with the needs of the business?
- How does working with them complement or hinder your sustainability efforts and are there ways to improve?
Regardless of the industry you operate in or the size of the business you work for, the chances are someone in your company deals with third parties regularly, so assess with upper management how you can forge more sustainably-minded relationships to coincide with your sustainable efforts elsewhere in the business.
Final thoughts
From gaining the loyalty and trust of your team and wider departments to reducing overhead costs and minimising your carbon footprint, there are many advantages to opting for eco-friendly practices. Attracting talent who values these aspects in an organisation is another key advantage that will hugely benefit your business.
Workplace corporate social responsibility encapsulates so many areas of a business’s operations and the organisations building true eco-credentials understand that long-term plans are far more effective than short-term fixes and temporary solutions.
Interested in other effective ways you can attract talent to your business? Book a demo and we can help.
