Sifting the CSR sheet from the fluffy Green chaff
“Bored Bored Bored, my sustainability team is bored. Thoughts on how to get the mojo back….
We all hear sexy corporate sustainability stories from companies like Patagonia and Seventh Generation. Insanely excited employees, cool programs, carbon footprint shrinking, productivity rising, yada yada yada. Then you turn around, think about your own program, and wonder where the mojo went. Sure you’re recycling cans and turning off the lights. But nobody is talking green around the water cooler.
So how do you add luster and long term engagement to your sustainable brand? And how do you turn employees into brand advocates? Article by Marc Stolber, Creative Director,
In Essence response,
Having just spent a year helping a leading sustainability consultancy re-brand themselves into the private sector, I empathise with the statement from Marc but believe that 'employee engagement' CSR is far more complex than brand management. Many CSR ambassadors are divorced from the rest of the commercial world. They no longer talk about the "green wash" - in fact 'Green' appears to be a word never to be spoken again. Whilst the Sustainability industry is young , dynamic and constantly evolving (in line with the environment no doubt), they are guilty of communicating in academic/scientific language and are constantly inventing new buzz words like Circular Economy and Closed Loop Re-cycling.
At the other extreme you have many retailers and manufacturers who are marketing CSR to their advantage with false promises and no real benefit to the environmental cause. Only when Sustainability consultancies and CSR management appreciate that all strategies must have a commercial outcome ( ie drive bottom line profit) will they engage the employee force and more importantly Management.
When its done well, the Sustainability and resource efficiency research and implementation can drive New product development, compelling brand propositions that can be supported AND make considerable cost savings. Energy management is one example but Water and Waste are far bigger issues in the CSR world than energy. In this recession, retailers are still 'king' and as such, FMCG manufacturers ( the largest contributors to the damaged environment) are doing the bare minimum to satisfy retail procurement and CSR supply chain requirements. The pressure on margins will simply not allow them to invest beyond that.
The consumer is environmentally conscious and often wont pay a premium so its stale-mate situation. Sadly the result is that brands develop false "green claims" through vague marketing promises and justify their CSR policies in an Annual Report and Accounts.
Whilst I am a huge brand fan and strategist, my belief is that the cultural change must begin with the Sustainability Consultancies who advise customers on real and effective CSR policies. This will require them to have a Commercial outlook and simplify jargon to engage Executive Management. For those who really understand the environmental issues, Diageo and Asda are great examples of companies really making a difference . Don't be fooled by the "Green fluff" from other leading retailers and FMCG brands. In my view the Sustainability consultancies to watch are Sustain, Best Foot Forward and 2 Degrees
