The word “sustainability” suffers from tremendous overuse in the energy space: “solar,” “green,” and “renewables”—everyone uses the same buzzwords. We’ve diluted what some words mean to a point of near meaninglessness. Your customers may say they like to hear these words (and some of them do), but few people actually care. And when they do care, it’s because your intentions and impacts are clear, tangible things that matter to people.
How can you make your efforts authentic?
Here are a few places to start:
1. Define what you mean by “sustainability.”
Define the actions, processes, and policies you are actually taking that are sustainable. This is the beginning of your manifesto, your why and how. It’s a baseline to set aspirational, yet achievable, long-term goals—goals that are measurable and time bound, goals that will impact the lives of your customers both current and future, now and for generations to come.
2. Defer to your in-house experts.
You work at an energy company, so you have in-house experts. Find out who they are and take them to coffee. Ask them about their challenges and opportunities, and learn how they can help you get buy-in from key stakeholders in order to make #1 on this list possible. They are your experts. Leverage them.
3. Start thinking heretically.
Be different. Find a way to stand out from the crowd. Draw attention to the positive work you are doing. There is little point in pursuing sustainability to benefit your customers if they don’t know about it. We can help.
Got questions? Not sure what “sustainability” truly means for your organization?
Reach out. We got you.
