Sustainability: business, life, environment

In a report, Capturing the Green Advantage for Consumer Companies, executives at 20 leading consumer companies were interviewed about their sustainable business experiences and strategies.  According to the report, "The green movement is about reducing waste and minimizing our impact on the environment. Companies that translate these goals into a holistic approach to offering differentiated green products bringing down costs across the entire value chain have been rewarded with higher margins and market share."
 
Business sustainability is not exclusively environmentally focused. Business sustainability programs offer measures to save money and grow your business.  Integrating sustainability concepts into core business functions makes companies more nimble in a fast-changing world.  Your customers want it, it can increase your bottom line, improve employee morale, reduce risks, and... It is good for the environment. 
 
Here are 15 Sustainable Business Strategies to help grow your business:
 
1.    Office Energy Consumption – Evaluate the average energy use per square foot of office space and implementing best practices to reduce: energy consumption studies, efficiency practices, equipment modifications, etc.
2.    Employee Commuting – Offer employees incentives to ride public transportation or participate in car/van pooling.
3.    Employee Telecommuting – Reduced office space and transportation as a potential win-win-win practice for businesses, employees, and the environment.
4.    Sustainable Design – Consider materials selection, energy consumption, manufacturing, product use and operation, and final disposition, early in the product development process.
5.    Water Conservation – Manage water entering the company and look for opportunities to reuse water.
6.    Management Systems  – Raise eco awareness and company commitment through established sustainability policies, standards, metrics, and self audits.
7.    Environmental Philanthropy – Beyond just corporate volunteering efforts provide access to technology, engineering support, information and research that benefits the local community and the environment.
8.    Packaging – Focus on using as little packaging material as needed and making packaging as recyclable as possible.
9.    Pollution Prevention – Keep attention on both source control and waste reduction
10.    Recycling and Waste Reduction - Anywhere there is a trash can, there should be a recycling bin.
11.    Resource Conservation – Consider material and energy consumption across the entire value chain…reduce, reuse, recycle.
12.    Printing Less – Paper makes up about 35% of a typical company’s total waste stream
13.    Go Digital – Reduce paper use and get contracts and documents signed more quickly by using electronic signatures.
14.    Sustainable Partnering – A key aspect of business sustainability is making sure that you manage your supply chain and partner with companies with similar values.
15.    Sustainable Education and Development - There is always more you can do to make your business more sustainable.  Encourage education and innovation within the organization.