There can be many powerful benefits to involving your employees more in your sustainability efforts.
Times are changing
In the 2022 Danish general election, "Environment and climate action" was the second most important issue for voters. It surpassed topics like "Economy" and "Foreign and Defense Policy" in a time of rampant inflation and war in our backyard.
And it's not just a lone swallow: Over the past few years, we have witnessed the so-called "Great Resignation". The corona lockdowns have given people the opportunity to stop and consider why they work and what they want to get out of it. This has meant that people - especially younger people - are much more actively choosing their future workplace based on things like values, salary and climate action.
In a time of historically low unemployment, companies must therefore to a much greater extent than before try to meet the demands of employees to attract and retain the best talent. One way to do this is to engage and involve them in your climate and sustainability strategy as an employer. At the end of the day, they are often the ones who have to implement the various initiatives.
Improve job satisfaction
When your employees are happy to be at work, they not only stay with you longer, they also have a better overall experience at work. And that's an important point. It turns out that when you involve your employees in your CSR strategy, including your climate strategy, your employees' job satisfaction increases. In fact, almost 90% say they are happier at work if they are involved in their company's sustainability initiatives.
When you engage your employees in actions that positively impact the world, you foster a culture of purpose, innovation and collaboration. You'll also get happy and positive employees who speak openly and proudly about your company and its values.
Attract talent
66% of job seekers reject companies without a strong climate strategy in favor of companies with more ambitious climate goals. This is especially true for the younger generation of talent in the labor market. This is of course because climate change is by far the most pressing issue in society for young people. Therefore, they want to be part of the solution, not the problem.
That's why it's important that your company's climate action is a clear part of the values when you're looking for new candidates. When you do this, you'll also get more applications from candidates who share the same values.
Create a common goal
High on the list of employee concerns is climate change and there's no sign of that changing anytime soon. Implementing strong climate initiatives in the workplace can give your employees a common goal to rally around. You can take the lead as one of the leaders who listens to your employees' concerns and create a space where you can create change together.
Shared climate goals in the workplace is a unique opportunity to build a community with a common goal that is about something bigger than just sales and profit. That's obviously the most important thing for any business, but many employees want to be part of a higher purpose. This is especially important right now, with 60% of young people experiencing climate anxiety.
When you take climate action together with your workplace, you join forces to create positive change. This is something that creates employee happiness!
Increase productivity
It's important to have engaged leaders in your climate efforts. However, it's just as important to have engaged employees! Research shows a positive correlation between CSR initiatives and employee engagement.
At the same time, it turns out that engaged employees are far more efficient: Companies with higher levels of employee engagement achieve "higher earnings per share" according to a study that examined the correlation between the two across 49 companies.
Boost impact
When you provide resources and help your employees to live more climate-friendly outside of work, you show that you not only see them as employees, but also value them for who they are as people.
You also show that you are not only thinking about climate action at work, but also at home. In this way, you can drive far more change than you would be able to solely within the confines of your company. Your employees' families, friends and acquaintances are also potentially touched by the action when it is taken home - and in this way you have a great indirect effect across communities and families.
The result of engaging your employees around effective climate action at work and connecting them with a common purpose improves their wellbeing and sense of satisfaction. This in itself is a win 💪
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