BBMG Green the Team

8/3/2019 BBMG Green the Team

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Leading companies are recognizingthat sustainability can be a competitiveadvantage, but only i it resounds acrossthe entire organization. And its true:successul engagement programs herego ar beyond the core sustainabilityteamreaching rom the C-suiteand the accounting department to

the maintenance hangar and eldmarketing operations.

I the business case or "greening theteam is so stronggreat cost savings,better retention, improved morale anda nimble culture o innovationwhydont we see more companies investingin such programs? Well, culture changeis hard. The issues are seeminglycomplex. And our current economicclimate is a tough one, to put it mildly.

But as we hope to show in this handystarter guide, creating an eco-mindedworkorce is easier than ever, withmany companies openly sharing toolsand best practices and with youngeremployees enthusiastically embracingsuch culture shits.

From our experience with such clients asWalmart, Net Impact and the NationalEnvironmental Education Foundation(mad props on their recent report withGreenBiz), weve learned a lot aboutwhat it takes to green the team. Here,then, is our practical approach to gettingstarted, what strategies will be mosteective and how to hurdle some o themost common challenges.

It starts with a point o view:

sustainability isnt a ad. Its not

a nice-to-have. Its an innovation

imperative. Its an economic

opportunity. Its part o a

undamental paradigm shif

in the way we work and how

we do business.


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The trick is not to let any excitement around

green go to waste.

Andrew Winston, "Get (Your People) Engaged", Green Recovery

A Partnership of Purpose

It makes sense. I youre going to

invest in optimizing the supply chain,charting the true impacts o yourproducts and committing publicly tocertain sustainability goals, you shouldbe refecting on how to partner deeplywith employees to reach theseimportant milestones.

Feeling aligned eels great. Whenyou connect your employees to yourorganizations sustainability mission,you inspire and motivate them togo above and beyond, to be part osomething bigger. You open the doorto greater creativity and collaborationby involving every individual in openlyshared goals. And you will be surprised

and delighted by the variety o ideasthat come rom ar-fung or unexpectedplaces. As one employee suggested toWalmart: Did you know we can save$1 million i we remove light bulbs romour vending machines across the globe?

Even as the Earth warms, the economydips and generations shit (see oursidebar on Millennials), employeesincreasingly want to be involved andempowereda part o the solution.

From recycling and renewableenergy to education and volunteering,employees across industries and

countries are asking what theycan do. Thats not just an invitation.Its an obligation to act.

How, then, might we harness thisbudding movement to create realmomentum, engage millions moreemployees and truly acceleratesustainable business innovation?

So-called Green Teams oer a naturalstarting point. Oten sel-organized,these cross-unctional groups maybe ad hoc beore becoming moreormalized and sanctioned. Usually theycome together to help educate ellowemployees and explore opportunities or

case-making. The top volunteers makegreat candidates or getting dedicatedengagement programs up and running.As with any movement or campaign,youll need traction with core supportersbeore trying to build momentum.It doesnt need to be a green team,per se, but empowering a cross-unctional teamincluding employeesrom dierent departments and senioritylevelsis a great way to help design anddirect a sustainability program that canreach the entire organization.

Set the Strategy

Share a Vision. Like any initiative,

employees need to know where they aregoing and how to get there. Create (orbetter yet, co-create) a vision statementthat will help employees understand theprograms goals and what resources areavailable to them. Involving employeesin the development o the vision,through simple online surveys, inormaldiscussion groups or as part o regularsta meetings will help you create anemployee engagement program romthe inside-out, and that will improveits chances o long-term success.

Tip: Approach the development othis vision with your organization's

sustainability mission and goals in mind.

Find ways to connect individuals tobig, overarching company-wide goalslike achieving zero waste. Remember,employees at all levels want to eel parto the larger eort.

Make It Actionable. At mostorganizations, employees havevarying degrees o knowledge aboutsustainability issues and initiatives.For some, living a healthy liestyle,caring or the environment and

being active members o theircommunities are already importantparts o their daily routines. Other

employees may be interested in learningmore about how to make positivechanges in their lives, but need structure,guidance and support to get started.Once you hone the vision, ask how itconnects to specic calls to action.

Tip: Every employee is only one stepaway rom catching the sustainabilitybug, so make it easy to get involvedin concrete ways. Ask individuals to start

small by creating one goal, activity ornew habit. For example, BBMG oundthat the best way to engage more than2.2 million Walmart associates is bybreaking sustainability actions intobite-size chunks: We promoted 12

categories o actions to choose rom,and providing so many easy optionsmakes sustainability eel moreapproachable and doable.

Make It Personal. Issues like climatechange and biodiversity are complexand can seem impossible to understand.But raming these big issues in relatableterms is not impossible, and it is essentialto making sustainability part o youremployees routine.


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The most important motivating factors for

employees are concern for the environment

and society, support or a mandate from the CEO,

company reputation and job satisfaction.

Diane Wood, President, National Environmental Education Foundation

More than any other demographic,

Millennial Generation graduates

people born roughly in the decades

o the 1980s and 1990sare

interested in jobs where they eel

they can make a dierence. Consider

the ollowing data points:

88% would choose employers whosesocial responsibility values refected

their own.1

79% would likely accept a job

at an eco-riendly company over

a conventional one.2

86% would consider leaving

an employer whose social

responsibility values no longer

refected their own.1

54% of men under 30 and 55% of

women under 30 believe it is very

or extremely important to work

or a company that is socially and

environmentally responsible.4

MBA programs are quickly adapting

to the demands o Millennials, with

courses including CSR Principles and

Sustainable Enterprises.3

1. Businessweek.com, PWC Millennials at Work: Perspectivesof a New Generation 2. Marketwatch.com, MBA StudentsSee Green as the Way to Go, by Thomas Kostigen3. Greenbiz.com, The New Green Focus for Future MBAs,by Padma Nagappan 4. BBMG Conscious Consumer Report

Tip: To help answer "What's in it

or me?", use emissions calculatorslike the EPAs personal GHG Calculatoror Conservation Internationals Eco-Footprint Calculator. By answeringa ew questions about energy usage,recycling requency and driving habits,your employees can calculate theirootprint and learn ways to reducetheir impact.

Create a Flexible Framework.To create a truly global program,you'll need to oer "reedom withina ramework" so that dierent unitsin dierent regions can adapt coremessages and materials to accountor local cultures and knowledge levels.

The ramework shares the vision andestablishes the overarching goals. Itclearly describes how to create and trackour progress. It empowers employeesto set their own goals, share their storiesand suggest ways to keep improvingthe program. It oers a platorm orconnecting and collecting the data.

Tip:Consider a phased, iterativeapproach to designing and deployingyour engagement program. Thinklike an ad exec or political candidate.

MILLENNIALS:

How Engaging

Form the roll-out plan around "tent

poles" or key themes. Consider peggingthemes to what's happening seasonally;or example, summer maybe a good timeto hit the theme o water conversationand winter may be a good backdropor energy efciency.

Defne Success.Identiy keyperormance metrics at the onset.We can't stress this enough. Createa baseline to help track progress.Measure and report results regularly.You'll be glad you did.

Tip: In addition to ollowing retentionand job satisaction, also considertracking volunteer hours, number o

employees engaged in the program,and greenhouse gas emissions reduced.

Build the Buzz

Make It Voluntary. Mandatoryparticipation in sustainability eortsposes a risk o alienating employees.Keeping initiatives voluntary attractsindividuals who are genuinely interestedin committing to the eort and lowersthe barrier or those who are simply

interested in learning more about

how they can get involved.

Make It Rewarding. Recognizingemployees eorts and achievementswill go a long way toward keepingthem engaged. Create opportunitiesor employees to be recognized by theirpeers and their managers and senior/executive leadership. Both inormal andormal acknowledgement will let yourcolleagues know that their actions arenot going unnoticed or unappreciated.

Tip:Engaging your employees inyour eorts should be un andrewarding. Theres nothing like a littleriendly competition to achieve those

goals! Create teams across or withindepartments and create interofcecontests around activities like recyclingor reducing energy use. Quirky awardscan work, too. One department createda "Save Some or the Fish" award tohonor the employee most committedto water conservation.

Get Out There.Internal communicationseorts like this one deserve to be treatedas seriously and as creatively as externalcommunications campaigns (even i they


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SPOTLIGHT///WALMART

In February 2010, BBMG partnered withWalmart on My Sustainability Plan(MSP)a specially designed globalplatorm aimed at helping Walmarts

2.2 million employees make real,tangible dierences in their own livesand communities. BBMGs role was toposition and brand what has becomethe retailers rst truly global associate-acing sustainability program. In 2011,through a partnership with the ClintonGlobal Initiative, Walmart committed tosharing the MSP content and curriculumwith organizations around the world.BBMG helped adapt core materials andbrand assets to create an MSP toolkitthat any organization can use. Learnmore at: www.mysustainabilityplan.com

We know the passion is there. By making

MSP available globally, were realizing the

positive impact our associates can have on

the planet and in society.

Andrea Thomas, Senior Vice President o

Sustainability Walmart


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How you activate employee

engagement depends on your

culture. Where would you place

your organization on this chart?

Collaborate. Do you spend most oyour time working in teams? Then use

existing group meetings to brainstorm

and develop engagement activities.

Control.Do you conduct extensiveanalysis beore making a decision?

Then take a lie cycle analysis approach

to identiy opportunities.

Create. Are you oten charting newterritory? Then generate ideas through

workshops and crowd-sourcing.

Compete. Do you always completeprojects beore they're due? Then set

goals, benchmark against your peers

and incentivize contests and challenges.

-Abbett, L., Coldham, A., Whisnant, R.Organizational Culture and the Success oCorporate Sustainability Initiatives

may not have the same budget).A phased, integrated approach argues

or building buzz in stages and usingall the communications at your disposal,rom the Intranet and dedicated e-blaststo unconventional ideas such as coeesleeves, Post-Its, screensavers andhangtags on breakroom rerigerators.How and where can you gently interruptyour colleagues to inspire them to jointhe eort? Involve the marketing teamin creating the messages and materialsso the tone stays inspiring and energetic.

Tip: Table toppers in caeterias oer agreat way to reach your target audiencewhen they may be in a more receptivemood or entertaining new ideas.Guest speakers appearing in webinarsor on breakast panels or at "lunch-

and-learns" can also give third-partycredibility to your eorts.

Celebrate Success

Share the Stories. Create in-personand digital opportunities or employeesto share their activities and experiences.Morning huddles or weekly stameetings oer natural venues orsharing progress.

FREEDOM WITHIN

A FRAMEWORK

Tip: Create a Facebook page or setup a site on your Intranet that connects

employees with similar interests andcommitments to sustainability. It will helpacilitate dialogue and monitor areas thatneed additional resources.

Keep It Positive. Yes, the issuesare complicated and have seriousimplications or our uture, but scaringyour workorce into recycling (or else)won't create the highly engaged cultureyou seek. Stay positive by keeping theactivities un and rewarding.

Tip: Create a set o guidelines to directconsistent communications; keepreminding people why you're doing thisand how you're making progress.

Keep It Going. Repurposing successstories and closing the loop is probablythe most critical success actor to avital, ongoing employee engagementprogram. Are you oering multiple,accessible eedback channels? Are youtaking a news bureau approach toregularly and consistently share programupdates? Are you making time duringannual strategic planning to set a courseor updating the program and keeping itrelevant or the next 12-18 months?

Keep Hurdling

Launching and maintaining anemployee engagement program aroundsustainability is certainly not withoutits hurdles. Three o the most commonchallenges are limited resources, lacko expertise and limited reach.

Limited Resources. A commitment tothe up-ront investment can be dicultto secure, resulting in a lack o money,time, executive support and/or tools.

Solution: Focus on the business case:

Protability: Sustainability initiatives canreduce energy costs, increase employeeproductivity and result in a healthierworkorce (read: lower insurance costs).

Brand: Involvement in environmentaland social causes can increasecustomer loyalty by building a brando integrity and responsibility.

Talent: Employee engagement helpsyour company to attract and retainthe most talented people.

Our new program provides a more personal

way for employees to communicate and get to

know each other . . . which also helps improve

the eciency of the workplace.

Clara Wong, Vice President, Walmart China, HR and Administration


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Intels employee engagement eortis internally structured around threecore pillars: Learn. Act. Share.The technology company wantsto make it easy or its 90,000+employees to learn whats goingon and why it matters. Importantly,the initiative is designed to empoweremployees to act toward strategicobjectives by acilitating the sharingo inormation, success stories andlessons learned.

Since 2008, every employeesannual bonus is calculatedaccording to sustainability results.By challenging each departmentto improve their processes andproducts with sustainability inmind, and by recognizing specicengagement opportunities, Intelcelebrates the diversity o itsproessionals while increasing

accountability. Circuit, Intelsdaily digital newsletter, highlightsvarious employees contributions,calling out achievements andinspiring uture activities. Intelalso has programs to encourageemployee action and innovationaround sustainability. Through itsSustainability in Action program,Intel provides unding or innovativeenvironmental projects submittedby teams o employees romaround the world.

It is critical to make the sustainability

message constant, repetitive and

accessible through multiple channels.

Make sure its strategically aligned

and tied to the core business and your

companys visionnot just a green

page on your Intranet.

Suzanne Fallender, Director, CSR Strategy

and Communications, Intel Corporation

and even presentations about theirlocal activities, such as cleaningup a local watershed in Beijing orspearheading a composting projectin San Francisco.

To engage thousands o employees

in over 40 dierent countries, we

created a ramework that is global but

allows or hyper-local customization.

Hyatt Thrive enables us to leverage

positive eorts around the world and

let them add up to make a signifcant

global impact.

Brigitta Witt, VP o Corporate

Responsibility, Hyatt Hotels Corporation

Hyatt Thrive, Hyatts globalcorporate responsibility platorm,ocuses on our key pillars that thecompany believes are essential to athriving community: Environmental

Sustainability, Economic Development& Investment, Education & PersonalAdvancement and Health & Wellness.

To support Hyatt Thrive, thecompany launched a socialnetworking site for 300+ GreenTeams around the wor ld. Morethan 2,500 associates use theplatorm (similar to Facebook)to connect with each other andshare photos, questions, stories

SPOTLIGHT///HYATT HOTELS CORPORATION

SPOTLIGHT///INTEL CORPORATION


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Lack o Expertise. A lack osustainability expertise inside thecompany can make it challengingto launch such a program.

Solution: Take advantage o themany organizations that specialize inhelping companies take the rst step.For example, Net Impact recentlypublished a report titled Making YourImpact at Work: A Practical Guideto Changing the World rom InsideAny Company.

Limited Reach. Global and diverseworkorces have varied levels oawareness and interest in dierentareas o sustainability and engagementopportunities.

Solution: Listen rst to what employeesrom dierent regions and operatingunits care about and where they seeopportunities. Then, educate andempower employees to take actionon the issues that matter most to them.

The engagement programs that succeed

will provide exible rameworks, inspirebite-size actions and stay creative at every

step. Taken together, they will serve as a

vast support network or helping millions

o people enjoy healthier, greener lives.

What are we waiting or? Lets get started.

And In the End

The business case is clear. The benetsare concrete. The momentum is buildingand employees across sectors aremore ocused on making their lives,their communities and their workplacesmore sustainable. Thats a good thing.The issues are too great, the need istoo urgent, or us not to act aster andaccelerate innovation at every level.

When we collaborate on moving towarda more just and sustainable planet, one

o the most gratiying things is howpersonal, immediate and visceral theimpact can be. A colleague replacespotato chips with organic carrots, lowerscholesterol, loses weight, eels better,reduces doctor visits and is generallymore antastic at work and home. Suchactual examples underscore that millionso small actions do indeed add up to abig dierence. The impact scales globally,and that's worth celebrating.


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About This BookletThis booklet is meant to inspire more organizations to engage their employees inliving healthier, more sustainable lives. We'd like to thank Walmart, Intel and Hyatt

Hotels or their support. Please share your own experiences and any tips with us,and don't hesitate to direct comments or questions to [email protected].

About BBMGFounded in 2003, BBMG is a nationally recognized branding and marketing rmdedicated to creating innovative brands that engage and inspire todays increasinglyconscious consumers. By integrating branding with sustainability, technology andsocial purpose, BBMG helps organizations embrace innovation, orge new markets,

create new experiences and drive real culture change. Recent clients include Brown-Forman, Samsung, Seventh Generation, Earthbound Farm and Fair Trade USA.For more inormation, please visit bbmg.com.

BBMG Green the Team

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