Over the next few months Richard is planning to review the benefits and pitfalls of implementing an environmental management system (EMS).
To start, what is an EMS? There are a wide range of definitions many believe are quite confusing.
Richard believes an EMS is a formal system which outlines your commitments to the management of your company’s impact on the environment. It usually sets out the environmental policy on a wide range of environmental issues including waste, pollution, energy and use of resources. The EMS will set objectives and targets, and measure itself against those targets.
Many companies adopt the international standard ISO14001, but this is not the only approach and in future months he will be reviewing the various options.
This month Richard wishes to outline one of the key benefits – Improved Corporate Profile and Business Image. In these tough economic climates companies increasingly have to differentiate their product and services to set themselves apart from the competition. One relatively simple way is to improve the overall environmental image of your business. Be seen to be green and you can easily improve your sales and market share.
Large organisations are facing increased mandatory legislation to reduce their carbon footprint and their overall environmental impact. They have to report on their corporate responsibility at their AGM. There is an expectation that they will be improving their green profile. There are many examples where this is the case. Marks and Spencer’s Plan A states that they will be Carbon Neutral by 2012. While doing this they have saved £70 million.
But the key point is that they are forcing their environmental agenda down the supply chain. In a recent presentation I outlined the importance of environmental good practice and why it is a wonderful marketing opportunity.
The link below takes you to the presentation:-
Companies do not need to wait, and being green is relevant to all businesses. It has been shown that 20% of all visitors to the UK expect their hotel to respect the environment and to have taken steps to significantly improve their carbon footprint. In supermarkets there is the concerted effort to reduce or even eliminate plastic bags. In addition, all supermarkets recognise that being environmentally friendly is a differential advantage, and are making great strides to improve their impact.
We can see similar moves within a wide range of industries including finance, legal, travel, defence, construction and medical. Richards recommendation is that all companies improve their environmental standing, and the best way of ensuring this is achieved, and sustained is to introduce an EMS. By installing a system to formally manage your environmental impact, your business is far more likely to ensure that the improvements are not a “flash in the pan”, but are maintained and improved upon.