While it might make sense for a lot of companies to start with small sustainable steps, some might argue starting small might get you bogged down in small tasks. Therefore, they would rather identify the major levers, then tackle that one big project with full force.
For some companies, it’s fairly easy to see this big lever, such as airlines with their high pollutant emissions from jet fuel. Lufthansa, for example, has founded a subsidiary called compensaid, which aims to solve this problem. Customers of all airlines can use the platform to pay the price difference between conventional and synthetic jet fuel. Synthetic fuel allegedly reduces CO2 emissions by 80%. Lufthansa uses the money collected to purchase synthetic jet fuel for its own flights. Why don’t they switch entirely to the supposedly better fuel? That is something I actually don’t understand. Sure, it would mean higher costs, which would lead to increased flight prices. If you assume that fuel accounts for about 25% of operational costs and synthetic fuel currently costs three times more, then flight prices would need to increase by 50%. That sounds extreme at first. And in international competition, this might not be immediately possible. However, Lufthansa has many monopoly routes where they could start. At the same time, the company could position itself as truly committed to sustainability. And we, as consumers, would finally get an idea of how expensive flying really is.
Using OKR to create sustainable companies
For many other companies, the big levers are not as clear. Phat Consulting for instance practices a comprehensive approach to implementing sustainability in their business. The company first took the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and decided which goals their company could contribute to. This aligns their efforts with a larger global context.
They then set up workshops on these goals, where employees brainstormed what Phat Consulting could do to support the SDGs. The results of the workshops were incorporated into the company-wide OKRs. The employees organize their initiatives independently to achieve these goals.
Creating sustainable companies from the start
For startups with few employees, managing by objectives like OKRs is not always practical. However, startups have a great opportunity to be built sustainably from the beginning.
When hiring, you can ensure that employees share similar values. Then, each employee can be asked to consider sustainability in every decision, like at melon. The team around founder and CEO Cornelia Weinzierl also meets once a week to reflect on what more the company can do in terms of sustainability.
Motivating employees towards sustainable behavior
Sustainability is a journey, and neither individuals nor companies become sustainable overnight. If you want to make your company fully sustainable, it’s essential to involve your employees beyond just setting goals.
Most importantly, as entrepreneurs, you must lead by example. If you come to the office by bike or public transport and live sustainably in your private life, your employees will see that you are serious.
A finger-wagging approach doesn’t help much, as it only leads to resistance. Direct orders may be followed, but sustainability won’t be embraced or driven forward in this way.
Experience also shows that it’s easier to motivate employees to do something good, especially if they can choose the initiatives they want to contribute to.
Not everyone is an entrepreneur. If you are an employee and your management isn’t yet focusing on sustainability, you can find information at employees for future. They are building a wiki on sustainability in companies, which includes tips on how to convince management.
One thing is clear: companies don’t become sustainable by accident. They must dedicate significant time and space to the topic.
