"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed, citizens can change the world."
--Margaret Mead
Ideally, an office green team - consisting of a small group of thoughtful, committed individuals - can change
the way things are done in the workplace by launching a sustainability program. "Greenzu.com" offers a resource library of step-by-step guides for creating a green business strategy. Yet, even Greenzu acknowledges, "without adequate backing, staffing, and funding, the program is unlikely to succeed."
What it takes to start a Green Team?
Greenzu's "Guide To Starting a Green Team" explains that time and money are two key ingredients needed accomplish most large-scale, comprehensive initiatives, including developing and launching a corporate sustainability program. Without these ingredients, the green team becomes an "off-the-side-of-the-desk" volunteer project that will find itself overshadowed by other work responsibilities and priorities.
Sure, passionate individuals are probably willing to volunteer their own time, like lunch breaks, to attend
green team meetings and contribute ideas for greening the company. But, when it comes time to
implementing the ideas, it is doubtful that they will contribute their own money to the cause (e.g., paying
for any increased costs associated with buying 100% post-consumer paper for the office
printers). Additionally, relying on people to volunteer their lunch breaks to the green team will likely result
in having a fairly homogeneous group of very passionate individuals without getting important input from
essential relevant members of the organization.
People starting new teams should check out the "Tips for Selecting Green Team Members" For instance, the green team might decide to do a waste audit without being aware that the property manager maintains all the waste disposal contracts and that building security needs to grant access to the auditors.
What Role Does Management Play in Green Team Development?
In most organizations, the route to getting staffing and funding is through senior management. Senior
management can assign staff to the green team such that all key stakeholder groups are represented and
committed. Additionally, when the sustainability program is drafted and the business case is made, senior
management can approve the initial investment of funds. Thus, obtaining the third ingredient, backing, is
often crucial for getting the time and money needed to get the program off the ground. The success of
passionate people working to affect change from the bottom-up can only be improved by being elevated
off the ground from the top-down.
As Greenzu's guide to "Picking a Green Office Strategy" shows, developing an effective sustainability program requires strategic decisions that management must approve anyway. However, early senior management support not only helps ensure a better program is developed, it is also crucial in setting a tone that can remove much of the friction associated from the shift away from the status quo. Once leadership demonstrates a commitment to change, others in the organization are more likely to embrace it. And if certain individuals at the office continue to resist change, managers can play a role in stipulating and enforcing new policies and procedures. Senior management support can thus give the green team and the sustainability program the clout needed to be recognized as an important, legitimate corporate initiative rather than a trivial grassroots project. Changing the optics can engage individuals in the office that wouldn't otherwise participate in greening.
For more on winning green team buy in, check out Greenzu's template library of presentations and letters to upper management.
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