Employee Communication Strategy: A Must for Sustainability

A company that is working on its way to sustainability will become more successful if it has a good employee communication strategy. Susan McPherson, Senior VP of Fenton and who focuses on Customer Service Relations as well as sustainability communications, shared a list of suggestions on how a company can effectively communicate the importance of sustainability to its workers.

1. Converse with your employees everywhere, be it at the lounge area or in the washrooms or online. You can model them how you conserve water and start talking about how much it helps the environment and you can talk about the water crisis in most parts of the world.
2. As the company goes through the sustainability projects, show the progress through meetings and discussions. You can even chat those with them informally when you catch them somewhere outside of the offices.
3. Starting on the first day of work of newly hired employees, integrate sustainability so that they know that business includes taking care of the environment and that is the type of company culture that they now belong.
4. Technology is a must and it has helped various companies and people as it made their lives easier. However, it has to be used effectively and appropriately. While it is very important to use them, do it wisely, effectively, and at the right manner. Companies use their intranets while others prefer email messages. Consider the best employee communication strategy to use for reminding them of sustainability.
5. Be consistent in sending messages and communications. Align them with your HR or your Internal Communications department so that both internal and external communications are parallel with each other.
6. Employ a spirit of competition so that everybody does each one's part . You may conduct a contest on recycling and see which department can reuse their materials properly or showcase a variety of methods that they have done in the offices or in their workplace that promote social responsibility.
7. Sometimes, each department and its employees may have the enthusiasm and desire to work on sustainability but don't have the flair for creativity. However, they always try their best to conserve energy such as using as little water as they can, and reusing office supplies and materials. These employees and their efforts need to be acknowledged and recognized because they are engaged in the company's sustainability drives.
   Other employees and departments are lucky to have the creative talent to find ways of making effective and artistic use of the recycled materials. They should be recognized for their creativity and engagement as well.
8. Employees who have the drive to encourage people towards sustainability can be supported through if they want to work on sustainability campaigns outside of the organization. Perhaps the company will sponsor a sustainability drive in the community by conducting campaigns that can greatly help people become more environment friendly. People who lead are the key messengers and thought-leaders that you need to keep and motivate.
9. The employee communication strategy that the company will use toward sustainability should always be fun. Employees should think of it as a cause and not only to gain recognition and create expectations of their support of the campaign.
   Management should always acknowledge the employees for taking extra effort in their enthusiasm of the campaign. Even if it is not a part of their job description, if the employees partake of the company's efforts, it means they support the company in its initiatives. This is a sense of loyalty that management should affirm in their staff.
10. Another important thing that is both encouraging and motivating as well as inspiring is when company provides meaningful incentives that can spark interest and participation in its employees. They might give a monthly prize to employees and departments that show exemplary support in sustainability efforts. Simple prizes such as a free vacation leave day or a special lunch with the senior management will make them feel that the company recognizes their support and loyalty. For mass recognition, simple giveaways or tokens composed of recycled materials will not break the bank.

Sustainability measures may not be a part of the employees' job description but an effective employee communication strategy can help relay the significance and relevance of the cause as a worldwide concern and that it is not only an organization's issue.

The employees are the company and if they are advocates of sustainability, it will help your company in achieving your sustainability goals. If the employees are committed and determined to support it because your internal communication strategies have been effective in its role to convince them of its value, the whole organization can greatly help the world through its best sustainability practices. Its adherence to corporate social responsibility will surely go a long way all over the world.