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Research by business services provider DWF suggests that organisations who are failing to improve their environmental, social and governance (ESG) credentials are struggling to attract new talent.
They found that two in five businesses are failing to find staff due to their ESG policies being perceived as “weak”, and also found that 61% of businesses are losing out on work as a result of poor ESG credentials.
These statistics emphasise the importance of organisations taking ESG principles more seriously to look better in the eyes of the public and remain an attractive business partner. Additionally, the new figures highlight the fact that workers are assigning more responsibility to employers in helping to tackle climate change.
Unfortunately, these findings come during the ‘Great Resignation’, a term that is used to describe the record number of employees who are quitting their jobs amid a post-pandemic rise in demand for better working environments and benefits. This alone has left many businesses struggling to attract new recruits.
With that said, it is evident that businesses must take more action on climate change to keep up with the competitive market. Fortunately, there are several simple solutions to boost your ESG credentials.
Determine your scale of ambition
Organisations should regularly review the scale of their ambition for tackling climate change. This can help organisations ensure they are utilising all the resources they have available rather than implementing a few tick box exercises.
For example, a company that simply states they have started recycling will not make that great of an impression. But organisations who start recycling as a starting step in their long term environmental protection plan will be seen as trying to make a genuine difference.
By having a fundamental plan to tackle climate change, your employees, prospective candidates, and the general public can see how committed an organisation is to the cause.
Demonstrate accountability and transparency
Another way in which your organisation can boost its ESG credentials is by demonstrating accountability when it comes to your carbon footprint and being transparent about the impact your organisation is having on the environment.
One example of a way to show you are holding accountability is by producing an environmental impact report, where you self-evaluate how you’re performing against your environmental goals. As for being transparent, this report could be made available for anybody to read.
By making yourself accountable for your actions, your organisation can demonstrate how important environmental awareness is to your strategic goals. This also acts as a great point of reference when seeing how much progress your organisation has made on reducing their carbon footprint.
Implement an environmental management system
ISO 14001 is the International Standard for environmental management. Designed by industry experts and published by the International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO), it aims to help organisations to identify the impact their business activities have on the environment, and to manage this more effectively, including putting controls in place to minimise their environmental impact.
The ISO 14001 framework can be implemented by any organisation of any size. This makes it one of the most popular standards in the world. Additionally, it provides organisations with an internationally recognised certification which validates their environmental commitments – something that both customers and potential employees take more seriously now than ever before.
By using the ISO 14001 framework, organisations can benefit from:
- Cost savings from waste and energy management
- An improved corporate image
- Legislative compliance
- Reduced environmental impact
- A happier and more engaged workforce
If you would like to find out more about these ISOs and their requirements, you can visit our dedicated product pages for ISO 14001, or give the QMS team a call today on 0333 344 3646.
