If you have an SMB environmental policy, then you understand that there is indeed a need for one in the first place. Any responsible business includes green issues in its overall objectives and makes an effort to reduce waste, assess its impact and reach out to the wider community. Yet a lot of companies still don’t have a policy, and the ones that do go little further than stating empty gestures as part of a company “culture”. Transparency and action go a long way!
Any green policy should work for your business and not against it. But that’s easier said than done. You can make mistakes, use outdated data and listen to the wrong experts when creating and using a policy. So, you need to assess how it is working and the impact it has. So, from regular reviews to including your employees, here are some tips to evaluate yours.
Implementing New Systems
The task of bringing in new policies that aim to at least highlight your company’s contribution to environmental issues is mammoth in scope. It’s never an easy thing to do, and you need all the help you can get. In essence, a policy is a set of statements by which you try to run a company. So, is that enough? No, of course, it isn’t! Any good policy must be actionable and sentimentally valid. Otherwise, it’s a set of empty promises. So, what can you do to begin improving yours?
A good evaluation of green policies will highlight new ways to implement improvements related to the environment. This includes a management system for reporting, sorting and storing data related to environmental actions. For example, your company can licence waste management software that is designed to assist with reducing the environmental impact of business waste. New systems like these integrate well with modern policies focused on investment for action.
Reviewing an SMB Environmental Policy
What use is an outdated policy? Not very much, most people would agree. Even the pretty modern problem of environmental awareness is shifting all the time. As new threats and issues emerge, all companies need to amend their existing policies. If you have any experience in a somewhat elevated position within a business, then you understand that policies are reviewed all the time. This is especially true of board and committee-level staff who deal with such issues.
Did you know that only 36% of businesses in the UK have an environmental policy? You might agree that that is a pretty low figure. Expediting a policy should be a concern if you don’t have one. But even if your company uses one, it could also be time to take a second look. It is common for organisations to review policies regularly. This is usually quarterly, annually or sometimes monthly if it is required to ensure your business complies with its own rules.
Updating as Needed
Reviewing a company policy is a much-needed part of running a modern business. Given the potential impact of operations, a green policy requires more attention than some others your company might hold. As such, an environmental policy must also be updated and amended as needed. This is usually to meet compliance changes both within and outside of the organisation. For example, your company priorities might change, and activities can shift significantly.
When any of these happen, there is potentially a direct impact on the environmental policy. Therefore, a policy such as a green policy needs amendment and updates should business operations transform in any way. High-level management, board members, investors, co-optees and committee members should all be informed of the need for a change. From there, it is wise to make a decision on a date for review and provide the subject matter to be discussed.
SMB Environmental Policy Communication
Any policy, no matter what it is, is useless if no one knows about it. At every level of the company, from floor employees to the CEO and investors, should be aware of the policy. Regular communications in various formats helps inform people about your existing policies. This could include regular employee meetings, text and email communications and even printed media such as a company rag. Of course, social media will spread information pretty quickly!
Make the policies publicly available
Green policies can be used to enhance public perception of a business. Therefore, it is wise to make your company’s policies available for anyone to see, which can even attract business. When other organisations see that your policies align with theirs, the doors are flung open!
Get top-level staff involved
Unilateral decisions about policies are always a bad idea. Consulting with top-level staff is a better way to ensure input is heard, acted upon, and approved before implementation. Scheduled meetings with clear agendas can help the board and stakeholders make decisions.
Make all employees aware
Employees can be an excellent source of information about your business. When it comes to green policies, educate employees and ensure they understand their responsibilities too. Employees are then able to actively contribute to the company’s goals and green agendas.
Request and review feedback
Policies should be regularly reviewed, including green policies. This can also be paired with risk assessments and anything that could cause significant impact to the business. Environmental third-party risks can be some of the most damaging, both figuratively and literally!
Realism, objectives and transparency
Like goals, policies should be achievable and realistic. Keep them simple and expand as needed. You can include them as part of company objectives in transparent public statements. This makes it more likely you will achieve these aims as you are publicly held accountable.
Having others throughout a business get involved in green policies is an effective tool for meeting aims. Working as a whole, the staff work with each other to meet any objectives outlined in a green initiative, helping with efficiency, practices, and even reducing costs.
The Links in the Chain
Some policies are only concerned with the internal operations of the company. However, an environmental policy concerns a wider nexus of actors both within and connected to the organisation. There are many links in the chain of business for any company. And yours is no different. Your company can have the most comprehensive green policy ever written. But it’s pretty much moribund if partners, suppliers, and anyone else do very little in this regard.
As such, ask yourself if the existing company green policy includes instructions for assessing other companies associated with yours and how to handle uncoupling. Businesses that don’t meet the high standards of your internal policies will directly conflict with your environmental policy. And in some sectors, this can even hurt business, where a high standard of green initiatives comes with a reputational boon. You can also include this as a common risk factor.
Employees and the SMB Environmental Policy
High-impact data such as environmental policies shouldn’t be kept to a handful of people. Of course, senior-level organisational members are required to make the policies. However, policies must also be available to the wider employee pool. Employees can be an excellent source of information for anyone inquiring about your company. So why would you not arm them with all the necessary data for establishing your company as a leader and possible partner?
First, consider if the existing green policy actually educates employees about the environmental effects of the business. But also where they fit in and their role within adhering to guidelines. Does the policy inform employees about the environmental impact of their activities? This can help you stand out among the crowd. How, you may ask? A survey by People Management found that 22% of employees were unaware of sustainability resources at their place of work.
Monitoring Overall Performance
A lot of companies have a lot of policies. Yet some are contrived, ambiguous and even outdated. Any policy, such as a green policy, must consider how it impacts the business as a whole, taking in a wider scope of what this means. Some policies affect others, contradict some and even assume risk. Even a green policy comes with risk, for example, an impact on operational costs poses a threat. So how can you reduce the negative impact of a policy?
The answer is pretty simple. You monitor the performance of the policy. Beginning with key performance metrics, you can actively collect data related to any policies you enact. For a green policy, you could consider KPIs such as overall carbon emissions, energy consumption and recycling rates. Any of these directly impacts a business on multiple levels, including reputational and financial. Any of these can be minimised with regular performance reviews.
Summary
Embracing new systems, such as technological innovations, will help with your SMB environmental policy. Communication is a crucial factor, and a green initiative must be endorsed throughout a company, within the public domain and across the entire business chain. Of course, a policy is useless without careful handling. Reviews, monitoring, and amendments must be considered and made as needed, using valuable data such as KPIs and feedback.
