The Sustainable Business Journey If your company is investing in green initiatives and working toward becoming a more sustainable business and/or company, you need a strategy, plan, and a roadmap. A sustainable business journey starts with establishing a clear company purpose and mission, creating the right culture , and engaging employees.
The Sustainability Checklist for Business Green Business Bureau has created a checklist that serves as a playbook for becoming an environmentally and socially responsible business. It focuses on letting employees drive the cause and using a sustainability scorecard to track your progress. We include all the steps and explain how a targeted green business certification program to start can provide the sustainability framework you need to help establish the direction and priorities and shift your company to becoming more sustainable.
Start with Creating a Green Culture and Sustainability Program Every company needs a sustainability strategy and plan .
The Green Business Bureau Sustainability Checklist defines 25 steps to becoming a certified sustainable business starting with defining a mission, team and goals. It serves as a guide on how to launch and manage a company-wide sustainability program. It lays out a roadmap on how to create the sustainability results and story you envision as a company and check off steps in the process along the way.
Green Business Bureau Sustainability Checklist for Business The GBB Sustainability Checklist is a 13-page guide that explains 25 tips for launching and managing a sustainability program. Every tip is explained in detail and includes a how-to guide to implement each step. Here’s a summary of the major steps and the checklist of tips.
LAYING THE FOUNDATION 1. Write a green mission statement
2. Create a Green Team
3. Engage the right employees
4. Create a sustainability plan
LAUNCHING THE PROGRAM 5. Complete an EcoAssessment
a. Use a tool that produces an EcoScore
6. Launch and communicate the goals and plan to all employees
a. Make a big deal with a company wide launch meeting
ENVIRONMENTAL INITIATIVES 7. Implement a Green Procurement Policy
8. Recycle everywhere, properly
9. Eliminate plastic
10. Eliminate waste
11. Switch to more efficient lighting
12. Use green energy
13. Reduce fossil fuel use in vehicles
a. Shift some employees to remote work
b. Use electric and hybrid vehicles
c. Encourage and facilitate carpooling
d. Provide public transit passes
SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY INITIATIVES 14. Focus on employee well-being
15. Give back to charities & causes
16. Support your local community
17. Embrace diversity, equity, and inclusion
EMBRACING ACCOUNTABILITY 18. Use a framework to track progress and milestones
19. Publish an EcoScorecard
20. Calculate your carbon and GHG emissions
CELEBRATING SUCCESS 21. Recognize people and program achievements
22. Make sustainability part of your quarterly company updates
COMPLETING A CERTIFICATION 23. Verify your results by a third party
CREATING A MARKETING PLAN 24. Demonstrate your commitment via marketing
a. Promote your commitments and accomplishments on your website
b. Elevate your brand and improve your reputation using social media
25. Use a green business seal to promote your green business
a. Earn the benefits you deserve: quality employees, new customers
Conclusion: A Sustainability Checklist Is A Great Place to Start or Improve Your Sustainability Program Clearly there are challenges to becoming a more sustainable business and a major investment is needed to become more sustainable. But with the right people, solutions, strategy, and tactics, the cost of the investment can be minimized and the return maximized.
Whether you’re just starting your journey or well on your way, a checklist can help you define a sustainable business strategy and playbook. Our GBB sustainability checklist share the the knowledge and tools needed to become a purpose-driven business. It is a roadmap to become a more sustainable and greener business and discusses how companies can drive change.
Purpose-driven businesses are particularly well positioned to tackle the world’s biggest problems including climate change and the poor and unfair treatment of workers . This checklist will help you influence your executive management team and engage employees and other key stakeholders. You will also learn how to integrate your values into your work and company operations, drive system level change and transform your company to be a socially responsible and sustainable business.
