Why You Should Train Your Staff About Sustainability
Looking to improve your green credentials, but unsure if training will help your company?
This article by Zentive Agency explores three reasons why learning and development is key in improving sustainability in your organisation.
Although sustainability has become a boardroom buzzword for quite some time now, we are often surprised at how little staff (even managers and executives) can speak to the integrity of their business. Yes, they might have a soundbite to repeat to someone when they mention it, but do they actually have the skills to identify how their business is contributing to the causes and impacts of climate change and the knowledge base to consider new business behaviours to mitigate them?
As your customers and suppliers all begin to respond to the challenge of the climate crisis, training and teaching staff on the necessity and delivery of your sustainability mission is so important. There are opportunities for all stakeholders when learning new skills and of course inherent risks if your company falls behind. Just like the rise of DEI training over the past 20 years, staff proficiency in making decisions for the sustainability and longevity of the business, people and the plant is now a cornerstone to any HR’s staff outreach and development.
Here are three reasons why you should be training your staff to be more sustainability savvy:
1. Boost Regulatory Expertise
One of the primary reasons for investing in sustainability training is to equip your staff with the knowledge and skills needed to navigate the ever-evolving landscape of policies and regulations. In a world where governments frequently alter the pricing of goods and services to encourage sustainable behaviour, well-reasoned decision-making is essential.
For instance, this training empowers your workforce to turn price-based policy instruments into cost-effective opportunities, like transitioning from plastic bags to paper bags, allowing consumers to avoid plastic bag taxes and creating new income streams on every sale for your business.
It also helps mitigate risks associated with rights-based policy instruments, like carbon taxes on raw materials, or responding to market-friction policy instruments. Educating employees about transparency in ethical sourcing enhances your business's credibility and reputation, catering to consumers' growing concerns about fair trade and responsible sourcing.
2. Inspire Innovative Production and Consumption
The second compelling reason for providing sustainability training is to foster innovative production and consumption methods. Circular thinking, as demonstrated by industry leaders like IKEA, promotes a shift from linear to regenerative processes.
Learning and development around equipping employees with the skills to reduce energy consumption, minimise waste, challenge existing production systems, support local businesses, and optimise material and product use opens the doors to risk mitigation and opportunities for sustainable growth.
Training compliance staff and project managers in conducting assessments (such as Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs), Social Impact Assessments (SIAs), and Life Cycle Assessments) is crucial to de-risking operations and upholding the integrity and quality of products, services, and operations. It ensures your business aligns with sustainability goals and maintains a competitive edge in the market.
3. Improve Storytelling, Communication, and Marketing
Finally, for HR and Learning & Development managers, it's essential to recognise the significance of effective communication, storytelling, and marketing in the context of sustainability. Corporate communications, stakeholder engagement, reporting, and a strong social media presence are pivotal for showcasing your company's commitment to sustainability. However, it takes a team to build those stories as ‘you can't improve what you don't measure’. Training on monitoring impacts and carbon calculation is key to building stories around measurable change.
Eco-labelling, branding, and marketing with an emphasis on sustainability can also differentiate your business in a crowded marketplace. Collaborating with NGOs to provide further training can also amplify communication of your achievements. By advocating and campaigning, you can bolster your company's knowledge base and facilitate transformational learning both internally and externally. Your business can position itself as a catalyst for changing not only your staff but also your consumers' hearts and minds, evolving values, beliefs, self-image, and consciousness, ultimately impacting how they interact with the world and the markets you operate in.
Without a doubt, the pursuit of sustainability through learning and training in the business world extends far beyond the boundaries of management and business schools. It's a perpetual journey that each and every individual within an organisation embarks upon, be it through structured training programs, collaborative exchanges and workshops with colleagues, or the invaluable practical lessons.
In the current landscape, businesses find themselves facing an imperative transformation in their approach to sustainability and training. This transformational learning is the key to adapting to the rapidly shifting external contexts we see daily. It necessitates a fundamental shift in our perception of business's role in society, and this crucial evolution rests on the shoulders of a cadre of business leaders and teams who are not only committed to continuous learning but also ready to embrace the challenge.
This article was written in collaboration with Zentive Agency as part of a blog swap. To learn more about sustainability within the events space, check out their website, and to read Jackafal’s article for the swap, please check out How To Improve Inclusion At Your Next Event.
