Being aligned with Human Resources for a major part of my career I have had the opportunity to be associated with all key projects associated with the Human Resource function. In the last 10 to 12 years the world has shifted it’s focus to bring to the fore their actions to remain responsible as an organization towards the environment and try their best to ensure their performance aligns with the principles of Environment and social and related governance factors.

For most organizations around the world this sudden shift in focus can be attributed to the UN’s 17 Sustainability Development Goals and its obvious impact at all levels. Broadly speaking, sustainability goals are focused on meeting the needs of the current generations without compromising on the ability of the future generations to meet theirs. 

In an attempt to safeguard their reputations, whilst simultaneously being seen as responsible and environmentally focused, organizations are all focused on embedding sustainability in their business practices. More and more listed companies are publishing information about their ESG behaviours. 

And now the focus is on HR to become a big part of the traditional businesses making this shift.

HR now holds a key role in the scheme of things some broad interventions include facilitating conversations with employees and aligning their interests with the organization’s stand on the topic of sustainability, defining a code of conduct, launching equity initiatives, and engaging with employees through employee engagement activities, learning and development, creation of objective competency models and leadership development opportunities.

 My view is that HR must be suitably empowered to undertake its crucial role in the enabling of the functional, cultural as well as the technological changes as well as the heightening of the maturity levels needed to help in the sustainability goals of companies.

I have often contributed to providing information as part of the HR team for the planning and construct of the sustainability reports for my division. But I always found the exercise to be focused on portraying what we have done as an organization to stay compliant with the sustainability development goals, CSR related activities (which deal with present issues only) or the ESG goals we had as an organization, when in truth the report should be lending more focus on where we want to go and what we want to achieve in the coming year with regards to supporting our environments cause. It needed to have more information on what we are going to do from an advocacy and outreach perspective to achieve those goals. 

Further, more needs to be done to bring all stakeholders in the organization together to seal their commitment to this cause of improving human lives and protect the environment in our own small way. It is indeed a tall ask and not something for the ESG teams or the communications / marketing teams to worry about towards the close of the year.  For any company to make good on their promise to maintain an environmentally friendly approach they first need to facilitate a top-down approach with senior leadership taking the lead and that includes HR.

From a recruitment standpoint, most people would like to align themselves with organizations that are respectful of the environment and have sound practices with regards to the environment and that’s where the role of HR comes in. It’s not just about HR teams trying their best to encourage environmentally friendly practices but it’s also about creating a lasting company culture that attracts top talent while also improving workforce efficiency. 

Several sustainability initiatives are relatively easy to implement such as some obvious ones of minimizing usage of paper, saving energy resources and reducing carbon footprint. Other Green goals may take some amount of planning but are not impossible to achieve.

This is really a case for change management, firstly companies can create a good communication plan to create a sound ‘Awareness’ in the workplace as to why this change is so critical to execute so as to create a high level of adoption of green work practices all while ensuring that employees are slowly guided into the process so they don’t feel rushed or overwhelmed with the changes expected in their behaviour that they have to now accept. Create employee task forces or guiding coalitions to solicit feedback from employees so as to bring out the WIIFM (what’s in it for me) from the employees themselves. Further these taskforces can work to solicit feedback from other employees to improve the areas of focus. These constructive mechanisms will not only bring employees to confidently come up with solutions it will also help to create a ‘Desire’ to change in them. 

Moving on from creating the ‘Desire’ in the employees, HR teams can also work towards implementation of programs that encourage employee Knowledge gain such that they are familiar with the practices that are aimed at empowering employees in the long run to be champions of the change and  make sustainable choices without having to be prompted to reflect those behaviours, improving employee knowledge on the topic will lead to more sustainable lifestyles. This could even include training on energy conservation, recycling and reuse practices and most important reduction of waste. Post this, support can be provided to help employees develop their ‘Abilities’ to implement the changes that are expected to become the new norm at the workplace.

To ‘Reinforce’ the new found behaviours, HR teams can create recognition programs to reward employees belonging to high impact areas when they follow sustainable practices or whenever employees support eco-friendly initiatives as per the guidelines.

Several companies successfully club some employee engagement activities that also align with their ESG goals, such as volunteer activities and initiatives that encourage the active participations in environmental activities outside the realm of the office. Construction companies have huge roles to play which may involve using materials that are environment friendly and/or adopting energy efficient practices and building materials and most importantly inculcating waste management strategies.

Lastly, organizations can show their support for these sustainability goals by creating values that support the sustainability cause, working closely with construction, I can say perhaps policies on waste reduction would be a great way to start so that new employees can align right off the bat with the company’s values and follow suit with the right behaviours.

A firm sustainability track record and green HR practices can become a competitive advantage for companies and this can be a key differentiator from competitors. Not to forget the cost saved through reduced energy costs or reduced costs owing to controlled waste, in addition to the long-term relationships that are fostered with suppliers and clients who value the company’s initiative to stay Green.

Embedding practices that align with the sustainability goals is the responsibility of the HR team, but they don’t need to do this alone they can successfully rely on guiding coalitions to bring about this change with the active participation and sponsorship of the leadership teams.

In conclusion, it’s clear that embracing sustainable practices not only benefits the planet but also has a great positive effect on the company’s bottom line in the long run and companies can realize immense benefits both externally and internally. 

Strategic actions to support the cause will eventually lead to a culture of sustainability that will continue to create positive environmentally friendly ripples that support the organizations reputation and makes it an employer of choice owing to its long standing commitment to Green eco-friendly practices.