Experts Reveal Why This Recession is a Great Time to Go Green

By Debbie Lawes - BDC
Thursday, October 8, 2009

Cutting your energy costs can give your company a competitive advantage by improving efficiencies and your corporate image with both customers and suppliers.

It`s understandable to think this recession has put a damper on "green" or environmentally friendly business practices. Going green or staying green may be a luxury many struggling businesses simply can`t afford these days.

But while that may have been the case for past downturns, times have certainly changed. For starters, many green initiatives save companies money.

Catherine Swift, president and CEO of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB), which represents 105,000 small businesses nationwide, says she`s seen no indication from her members that saving the Earth is taking a back seat to saving the business.

"One reason is that for smaller companies, the recession hasn`t been as dire as for large firms that are driven by the stock markets. Our members are privately owned companies, and among them, we`re continuing to see a focus on environmental practices," she says.

A 2007 CFIB survey found that energy conservation ranked as the second most important environmental issue after recycling of materials, with 83% of its members having already implemented energy conservation changes. While about half of respondents said cost savings was a factor in making changes, 81% said they were motivated by their own personal views. Swift says that trend appears to be holding.

"These companies are motivated primarily by the owner`s personal views about the importance of protecting the environment for future generations. Embracing environmental practices isn`t something you usually have to convince them to do," says Swift.

Of course, it`s always nice if a company can help the environment and its bottom line at the same time. A quick Google search will turn up thousands of web pages on how companies of all sizes can be both green and profitable.

First, there`s the low-hanging fruit, things like printing on both sides of paper, recycling, switching to energy-efficient light bulbs, turning down the thermostat and shutting off idle office equipment. Natural Step Canada (www.naturalstep.org) has a free sustainability toolkit that can be downloaded from their website. Another helpful resource is a book authored by Bob Willard entitled "The Business Case for Sustainability".

According to Willard, integrating sustainability strategies can increase profits up to 38% for large companies and 66% for small- or medium-sized companies over a five-year period. A lot of these savings can be achieved by reducing energy costs.

"If your energy costs are high, you certainly have an incentive to reduce them," says Michel Bergeron, Vice President, Corporate Relations at the Business Development Bank of Canada. "But even if they aren`t high, cutting your energy costs can give your company a competitive advantage by improving efficiencies and your corporate image with both customers and suppliers."

Tax credits and incentives for energy efficiency and other green incentives are being pushed from Ottawa all the way down to local municipalities. Most utilities now offer businesses incentives to reduce energy use. Hydro Quebec, for example, offers financial assistance for electricity-saving industrial equipment, systems or processes.

Keeping ahead of the law and public opinion
Lower operational costs aren`t the only reason to reduce energy use. All levels of government, including local, are introducing laws and regulations that will require companies to reduce waste and embrace more sustainable business practices.

For example, once cap and trade rules become more widespread, Bergeron said companies will need to be careful about how much carbon they produce.

"Reducing your energy use – and thus, your carbon footprint – should be part of any business plan. You can start with something as simple as reducing your corporate travel by using inexpensive videoconferencing technologies like Skype," he says. "But the most important building block should be an energy efficiency audit of your workplace."

Business owners that act early will find themselves at a competitive advantage when new rules are implemented.

"At some point, the consideration of environmental and social issues will be mandated, so for business this becomes a central risk factor. It also becomes an opportunity. Companies shouldn`t wait until the economy picks up," says Melissa Shin, managing editor of Corporate Knights, a magazine focusing on corporate responsibility.

Attracting a green workforce
Companies that don`t embrace environmental practices could also find themselves as a competitive disadvantage in attracting young, skilled employees. Today`s young workers are more environmentally aware than previous generations, and they`re bringing those values into their workplaces.

"BDC, for example, is heavily paper-based and this becomes an irritant for our younger employees who view paper as a waste of resources," says Bergeron. "They`re putting pressure on us to move more quickly to change our ways, and we are."

Companies that incorporate environmental responsibility into their mandate will also tend to have more loyal employees who are more willing to make sacrifices, if needed, during a recession. "Embracing environmental and socially sustainable practices is a great way to retain your staff in an economic downturn," says Shin.

Would a 4 day work week make your office more green?

Kira Vermond weighs in on the 4 day work week and it's environmental impact.


Weighing the merits of the four-day week

KIRA VERMOND
Globe and Mail Update
September 20, 2008 at 6:00 AM EDT

Thursday is the new Friday. At least it is if you work for one of the growing number of employers offering workers a four-day workweek to help offset long commute times, congestion, pollution and skyrocketing energy costs.
While the majority of trendsetters come from the public sector – Alabama, Utah and Nova Scotia have either implemented programs or are thinking about it – some private companies – have jumped on board the 10-hour day, Monday-to-Thursday bandwagon.
Sure, three-day weekends are nice, but do longer workdays suit older employees or those who have to pick their kids up from daycare by 5:30 p.m. on the button? And while the energy spike's silver lining might be more flexibility on the job, exactly how green is a condensed week anyway?
They want it

At VirTex Assembly Services in Austin, Tex., which made the switch to four days on Sept. 8, 2008, it was actually employees who went to management and proposed the plan, says Brad Heath, the company's president and chief executive officer.
“The increase in gas prices was really putting the pinch on their wallets,” he says before mentioning that the company made sure it asked all employees for their opinion before shutting down the machinery each Friday. “It was only going to work if it worked for everybody. We didn't want somebody to have to leave here because we went to a four-day workweek.”
Employees who need more wiggle room to pick up or drop off young children at school or daycare get 30 minutes of flex time he says. So far that's been enough time.
VirTex employees are hardly alone in wanting a shorter week. It's often listed as the most popular option in surveys. According to a recent Monster.com survey, for instance, 34 per cent of workers favoured a condensed workweek over other gasoline-saving options. By contrast, 19 per cent of workers considered employer reimbursement for gasoline costs the most appealing alternative, and only 7 per cent of workers preferred employer-subsidized public transportation.
How about clients?
While four-day workweeks make sense for the manufacturing sector, it's much more challenging for service-based companies that have to be available for clients' questions. Even on Fridays.
It's for precisely this reason that Babcock & Wilcox Canada in Cambridge, Ont., now runs a condensed week on the manufacturing side, but requires management and other support employees to work at least every other Friday, says Terry Danielczak, the company's manager of staff relations and employment. Beyond customer service, there's another upside too.
“The Fridays that you do work, they're the most productive days because half the population is off that day. It's just amazing how much you get done,” she says. No interruptions from the plant floor either.
LSM Insurance in Markham, Ont., also offers condensed workweeks to its four staff and 25 brokers. It staggers days off so all bases are covered says Lorne Marr, president.
“If a few people are taking advantage of the four-day week, we won't have everyone take off Friday,” he says. “Some have to take the Monday.”
Friday temptation
Having a wide-open Friday is a godsend for some, but for others it offers too much temptation to duck down to the basement home office to check in with work or finish that report. Ms. Danielczak admits it happens to her.
“To be honest, there are many Fridays when you're working at least half days and working from home. You're never totally away from it,” she says.
For others, working the Friday means putting in overtime, without feeling like it's eating into the weekend. And sometimes they end up making more money too.
“Yeah, the brokers are on commission so if they're able to work more hours and be more productive, they're going to do it and bring in more money as well,” Mr. Marr says.
Not so green
No doubt about it, touting the four-day workweek has a certain green appeal, which is not a bad thing from the PR point of view. But does shutting down for one day each week make sense from an environmental standpoint?
Not necessarily, maintains John Putzier, author of Get Weird: 101 Innovative Ways to Make Your Company a Great Place to Work. In fact, he's pretty sick of hearing about the green benefits of compressed weeks.
“I just find it annoying because when you cut to the chase, it's not about going green. It's about working less hard and having a three-day weekend. Let's at least be honest about it,” he says.
But is a flexible week such a bad thing? Aren't commuters happy about driving one less day?
“Absolutely. Then they can drive two hours to the shore on Friday.”
And that's the issue, Mr. Putzier says. Just because employees aren't driving into work on Friday doesn't mean they're going car-free all day.
“Listen, unless they're going to be shackled to the kitchen table, they don't run the lawn mower or do anything else that day, it's a wash,” he says.