For your clients and customers
It may sound cynical, but that doesn't make it untrue; your company will benefit from sustainable business practices. If you can connect your ethical policies and intentions to your brand in the mind of the consumer or your clients, you will stand to benefit from increased interest from those concerned about how businesses act upon their corporate responsibility. As time goes on, this group of people is only growing in size, with more awareness of environmental and societal issues, on the whole.
On which note, adopting a more sustainable business model can serve to attract more clients or customers. Consumers are more and more interested in where the money they spend goes, rather than just the product they get. If you buy a box of eggs, is the money going to a huge conglomerate that battery-farms its chickens, or does it go to to a local farm raising free-range hens? A more educated society with a wealth of information at their fingertips has led to more awareness about the consequences of business practices. Calls to boycott companies with certain political stances or unethical practices on Twitter have become the norm, and just one example of how people are making themselves heard about their desire to see progress towards sustainable business models.
Furthermore, if you are working with other businesses, it has a related effect. Businesses often want to show that, in addition to their own practices being environmentally friendly or beneficial to the local community, they work with businesses that have a similar perspective. The risk of subcontracting to businesses that don't share your values has been made apparent in the retail industry, where international chains have had unethical practices in their manufacturing processes exposed, only to lay blame on subcontracted companies. Businesses are keen to work with others that share their values or are representative of the values of their brand.
To lower your overheads
At first glance, sustainable business practices may seem expensive and time consuming, without much value for your business itself other than PR. However, this isn't necessarily the case. When it comes to environmental changes within your business model, you can help improve your energy efficiency and thus reduce overall spending on utilities. For example, do you have a small office with only single glazing? Consider investing in double or triple glazing to reduce bills during the colder months. Introducing recycling policies tends to make people more aware of the waste they are creating, which can result in less overall consumption. Even less obvious changes, such as using teleconferencing rather than sending employees to meetings in other parts of the country or other countries altogether can reduce internal costs, in addition to the environmental benefits.
Not only can your business make savings with sustainable practices, but numerous governments offer subsidies and tax breaks for those adopting environmentally or socially beneficial practices. Do you offer workshops to help community members who are budding entrepreneurs? Are you teaching children computer skills on the weekends? Does your business fall below a certain threshold when it comes to carbon emissions? Are all the vehicles in your logistics fleet hybrids? Be it from local or national government, there are a growing number of incentives for businesses who are changing the way they operate to become more sustainable. Be sure to check what your local policies are regarding sustainability.
To encourage innovation
Encouraging innovation within your business is easier if you can show your willingness to adopt new and cutting edge strategies. Sustainability is far from a new concept, but there are always new methods, procedures, and products being innovated to help businesses achieve their goals. The very nature of sustainability is forward-looking, motivating you and those within the business to come up with newer and better ways to improve sustainability.
Within your business, if you have sustainable goals, you can encourage employees to come up with even more efficient practices. Environmental sustainability, in particular, is all about efficiency. Procedures and logistical operations within your business can be made more efficient if everyone has their eye on sustainability. Finding a local supplier, for example, can not only improve sustainability, but also reduce the amount you spend on transportation and reduce the time it takes for delivery.
Sustainability also in and of itself suggests an innovative environment, which, in turn, is attractive to prospective employees. As with customers and clients, employees are also becoming more concerned about the societal and environmental impact the business they are working for can have. Additionally, innovators may be drawn to a business that makes it clear it is keen to adapt and develop its policies and approach to achieve sustainable goals, as it suggests that the business encourages forward-thinking and new ideas.
