Business owners are always on the lookout for ways to improve profit margins and make themselves more efficient. To make improvements to efficiency, you need to weigh up costs and eventual profits to ensure that these improvements are worthwhile. Did you know that you can also make these same calculations when trying to make your company environmentally friendly?
Global warming is an ever present issue in the world today, so we all need to do our bit to help. Doing so isn’t as hard as you may think, and you can make important changes to help the environment without losing business.
Here are some tips that you may find useful to become eco-friendly.
1. Electricity Is The Way Forward
You have probably seen plenty of images and videos in the media of large towers belching toxic fumes into the air. These pictures are often used to illustrate how big business is effecting our environment. However, these fumes only exist as a result of the burning of fossil fuels, such as coal, gas and oil.
Scientists believe that the only way to save the planet is by making the switch from these sources of energy to a more sustainable alternative, like electricity.
By now, all of your machinery should run on electricity, it is simply the cheaper and most efficient power source we have. But what about your vehicles? One way to make your company environmentally friendly without losing business is by using electric vehicles.
The most commonly found vehicle in places of business is the trusty forklift. These powerful machines are needed to move heavy loads around the workplace, but you can find an electric alternative that offers the functionality of gas and diesel forklifts. This way, you can continue business as usual, only without polluting the atmosphere unnecessary with petrol fumes.
2. Recycling
Explaining the positives that comes with recycling seems redundant at this point as it has been a staple of our society for decades, so let’s keep it brief.
The best way to make your company environmentally friendly is by recycling materials wherever possible. This involves separating your glass, paper and cans into different piles to be collected. If you aren’t being provided with the correct materials, you should seek advice from your local council or appropriate governing body. After all, it is also their responsibility to keep on top of these practices.
3. Bring Everyone Up To Speed
The duty of keeping a business environmentally should not fall squarely on the shoulders of the business owner. It might be your job to kick start the revolution but you need not do so alone. Everyone can make a difference; therefore, it is important that you inform all of your staff of the results that you want.
Hold regular meetings to inform your staff about the changes that you are making, and explain the reasons why. Doing so will ensure that the changes happen throughout the company, and not just in the back of your mind. Becoming eco-friendly isn’t an easy task and it will require the collective effort of everyone to truly make a difference. This effort must come from upper management, warehouse staff and anyone in between.
Once everyone is caught up, you can then bring about the change you want.
4. Enforce The Changes Where Possible
Anyone can claim to mark their business as environmentally friendly, and only pretend to make these small changes in an effort to keep the doors open. However, real change requires real action.
You don’t have to go mad. All it takes is making sure that recycling bins are placed around the workplace so that everyone has access to the scheme. Train your staff to use the electric forklifts and encourage them to walk where possible.
Making changes can even benefit your team. Shifting the way that your business works, or adding additional tasks to employees can bring about resistance. The way to combat this resistance is by ensuring that employees are rewarded for their efforts. Encourage the behaviour that you want to see and it will happen.
You may do this by giving out reusable coffee cups, improving standards in the canteen or making eco-friendly behaviour a category for the employee of the month scheme.
None of the above is going to impede your daily output, but these small, everyday efforts will contribute to the changes needed to help the environment.
5. Work Remotely
The internet is a magnificent tool. With steady improvements, the people of the world can now communicate with each other with the click of a button. You can use a variety of social media sites to communicate with someone on the other side of the globe in real time. Therefore, it is entirely possible to run a business without even being on site.
Now, you don’t’ have to move all duties to a remote location- that would be foolish. But, you can remove the need for unnecessary travel. Business meetings can be held over a laptop instead of flying to another country. Workers that live far away no longer have to make a lengthy commute. They can work comfortably from their living room. You can even reduce the number of days that employees need to be in the office.
As a result of this technological advancement, you may not need to communicate via a laptop every day, but you can see where this might be a preferable option. With this approach to business, we can remove the need for people to constantly use gas guzzling cars, trains or planes for everyday travel, thus making the world a little greener in the process.
You may need to work at it to find the right balance, but a work from home scheme is the perfect example of a change that helps the environment but will not cause you to lose business.
Conclusion
It doesn’t take a lot to make your business environmentally friendly and these changes are important for the future of our planet. What’s more, you don’t even need to lose productivity or profit if you follow the guide above. A few small shifts in behaviour and attitude is all it takes to make the world a better place.
