2nd Blog Assignment

To begin the process of implementing an environmental policy within my company, I plan on first establishing a green team which will consist of diverse and influential members. It is important that these members show commitment and are motivated towards reaching our sustainability goals. We will become an influential team within Triumvirate, which will implement greening initiatives to reduce paper usage, increase recycling, and promote energy conservation and other environmentally friendly initiatives.

We will also encourage other co-workers from different departments and levels to get involved.
First we would strategize and come up with main goals, which we would then assign to different members of the group. This will develop a sense of ownership and leadership to each member of the team. At first we would have frequent meetings in order to come up with goals and changes we want to implement, and strategize on ways to continually improve the process and drive our daily operations to become more sustainable.

Once we start implementing changes within our workplace, we would work towards our commitments and develop a corporate sustainability policy. The green team would meet regularly to ensure that our goals are being met and that the policy reflects any changes within the company.
My initial big assumption was that if I propose changes within the office, people would look at me as being domineering, creating extra work load, and also judgmental, because in a way I am saying that the way we do things right now is not the way it should be done. Some of the changes I would propose are:

·         Recycling – plastics and paper

·         Green purchasing – use recycled paper, and other recycled office products.

·         Emissions – plant trees to help offset our emissions

·         Distribute check statements electronically

·         Electricity reduction – encourage employees to turn of computers when not in use. Turn off office lights when not in use.

Since no one else in the company is proposing these things or wants to take ownership, I felt like I was the only one that is trying to take a step towards sustainability.  But once I spoke to some of the executive team members, I got great feedback and support , and am now spreading the word to raise awareness of sustainability and advice on how we can save energy, reduce waste, and be more environmentally responsible.

First, the green team would come up with a baseline plan for our policy which we would use as a foundation and develop further through our meetings. For our opening meeting, we will discuss and identify improvements to help our company operate in a more environmentally sustainable fashion. Our key goal will be to educate our employees and to raise awareness around the impacts of different habits that impact the environment.

Establishing Thought Partnership with key people at work will be the solution to get my project completed. With the support from the key personnel I can make certain decisions to initiate changes I want. It is important for me to hear their thoughts on my project as they will be the vital decision makers in the whole process.  Active listening is all about understanding what the person is saying, therefore, any disagreements can be resolved and mutually agreed upon. Key players that I have identified are my direct manager who is also the executive vice president, 1 person from HR, head of the marketing department, and 3 account managers who are volunteers that I have identifies thus far. Active listening sessions will help me understand how other people see sustainability and gather additional ideas on how I can improve and accomplish my goals.