Sustainability Strategies - Key Points

From our combined experience in the fields of sustainability, consulting and process optimisation we have identified several key points that are directly linked to the effectiveness and therefore the success of a sustainability strategy. In this publication we will identify these key points and provide a simple, explanation as to why they should be included in your company's sustainability strategy. 

Table of Contents

1. Know your place (and be honest)
2. Focus on what matters most to you
3. The Devil is in the detail - gather the right data
4. Invest in the process, not just the end result
5. Be action oriented
6. Progress over perfection
7. Ensure accuracy with reporting
8. Next Steps...

Know your place (and be honest)

The first and arguably the most important point is to establish a true and accurate review of your current position, it is hard to determine the course that will deliver the most efficient effective results, so start by answering questions including: 

• Have we identified the right targets to achieve our sustainability goals?
• Are the goals we have identified appropriate for the next decade?
• Are our processes delivering the desired results?
• Are our stakeholders engaged?

Establishing an honest baseline is the first step when creating a successful strategy. It helps you take stock of where you are, enables you to identify what has and has not worked, and, importantly, why.

So, look back and review, before you look to move forward.

Focus on what matters most to you

There are a vast number of options, decisions and ultimately solutions out there and available that you could embrace within your organisation, however it is important to clearly establish and decide from all the different things that my organisation could do to be more sustainable, where should we focus our attention and what should we do?’

Companies and organisations should be very selective in determining where to focus their attention. Priority goals should be centred around and focussed upon issues that are ‘material’ and core to the organisation. A good starting point would be to ask yourself:

• What will impact our organisation in terms of growth, cost and risk?
• What is important to our investors, customers, supply chain and other invested parties/ stakeholders?

Most organisations work across a number of important areas of sustainability, yet can often spread themselves too thin with the resources they have available. Instead, by successfully recognising time and resource constraints, they can focus on just one or two strategic sustainability issues and do them, well – this is a key principle. Do not overload yourself as the risk of doing so means you do lots of things badly.

In our experience we have found that significant progress can be made, sooner and with lasting effect if (at least) one person within a company or organisation has the responsibility of overseeing and managing such efforts as part of their job description (and who will give such tasks priority.) This delivers better results compared to all staff being given extra work/duties over and above normal relating to sustainability measures. 

The Devil is in the detail - gather the right data

If you want to make progress, you need to know what to monitor to understand how the actions you are taking are impacting performance – you can’t manage what you don’t monitor. To do that you need to set measurable targets, gather (assured) data and then track progress. It is very important to build action and governance plans and supporting processes to achieve those targets.

The information collected can then be used to develop benchmarks and key performance indicators (KPIs) which provides a solid foundation upon which to develop your sustainability strategy. There is also a further benefit of recording your progress, and that is you can then share the information and your successes with investors, customers, employees and other stakeholders.

Example of what a Sustainability Dashboard/Sustainability Data can look like

Invest in the process, not just the end result

While having a clear idea on what you want to achieve is essential, taking the time to consider how you will approach your sustainability goals is just as important to their success.

Implementation requires processes and these should be optimised by adopting efficient arrangements that are integrated within existing management systems, and are replicable across different sustainability issues. Don’t reinvent the wheel, instead adapt, refine and use the systems and processes you already have in place. These may be environmental management systems, health and safety systems or procurement processes – work with what you have and what people are familiar with.

Establishing sustainable processes – from evaluating waste production and energy consumption in quality audits to building community investment into employee development – helps deliver lasting change. One of the key enablers to achieving your sustainability goals is incorporating sustainability and ethical factors into procurement decision making.

Be action oriented

A solid action plan generally works better than a strategy that is 90% background and policy. We all love to deliver – getting that big project over the line, hitting your production targets, winning the next big order. Sustainability success is no different and a solid action plan can deliver more than a thousand strategic words.

Designing sustainability projects with a series of challenging targets, supported by a strong plan,  can motivate teams to achieve sustainability goals, and enable the wider employee base to contribute towards success. For a strategy to be effective and reach its target every employee has to be onboard.

Example of what a Sustainability action plan can look like

Progress over perfection

As with any project or implementation there will be obstacles and challenges that must be overcome to successfully reach your objective and to do so effectively you will undoubtedly need to adapt and make changes throughout the course of a project as further information comes to light, as the organisation itself changes and as the operating context evolves over time.

It is therefore far more important to set a goal that addresses the most important pertinent issues than striving to develop the "perfect" implementation plan.

Organisations can involve stakeholders by transparently reporting progress, successes and challenges – at regular intervals. Such an overall openness will encourage dialogue: viewing alterations as improvements, failures as opportunities for learning and not viewing them as mistakes.

Ensure accuracy with reporting

Public reporting done well is key to showing stakeholders that you are transparent and accountable. Demonstrating that your strategy accepts the challenges of your industry, while understanding the context of global issues, helps to build confidence that your organisation is serious about managing environmental and social impacts.

It is not only acceptable but desirable to not strive to be the ‘best’ – this is neither achievable or even possible for all organisations. The point is working out what is important, what is material and to make progress by keeping goals simple and achievable.

Next Steps...

Hey well done, you've made it this far and (hopefully) made a start on your own Sustainability report.

Are you looking for more topics on Sustainability? Find an overview of all articles here: Blog Sustainability

or find out more about our consulting services on our website: Sustainability