Pitching The Business Case for Sustainability

“How much is all this sustainability stuff going to cost?”

In a World of growing resource and environmental crises, cost may be the least of a corporation’s concerns when required to adopt sustainability principles to ensure long-term viability. Water scarcity is probably the most publicized concern that has many industries scrambling to innovate. In many circumstances, however, a business’s bottom line is not direly affected by sustainability issues, yet. Therefore, selling a strong business case to incorporate sustainability principles is paramount to your sustainability program’s success.

How do you put together a strong business case for sustainability?

You may only get one shot to do something. Start by utilizing your resources to see if anyone else in the industry has taken on a similar initiative. Then, make sure you have engaged all of your stakeholders before putting together a plan. Understand what matters to them. You may be motivated by the environmental improvements of an initiative while a frontline employee may connect to operational improvements and leadership may connect to return on investment. Once you’ve engaged everyone individually, bring all representatives together and make each stakeholder feel part of the process. Their collective buy-in will ensure the business leaders to which you are pitching the project that you’re bound to be successful.

Be creative and think long-term. Parlay ‘low-hanging fruit’ victories into corporate paradigm shifting projects. For instance, build upon your successful single-stream recycling program to develop a facility-wide organic waste composting program. When cost savings isn’t a driving force for an initiative, look to pitch work flow efficiency or public relations opportunities.

Reduction In Motion has been helping business leaders develop a case for sustainability for 20 years. The waste segregation and recycling programs we help our clients build are promote cost-savings and workflow efficiency. We work directly along-side our clients on-site to engage stakeholders and build momentum. Our initial on-site assessment will recognize your sustainability challenges and opportunities. Contact us today for a free consultation, (410) 877-1593 or TrashTalk@ReductionInMotion.com.