Why have environmental teams and champions?
Most businesses benefit from appointing a company Business Champion to co-ordinate and facilitate their resource efficiency programme. To maximise the impact of the programme, the Champion must have the support and commitment of senior management
Secondary to this is the support required from the project team(s) in delivering the programme.
What is the role of the business champion?
The key role of the Business Champion is to co-ordinate and facilitate the resource efficiency programme - they are not required to complete all the tasks by themselves. The Champion should act as the key focal point for communications, resources, action, programmes and training to create conditions for success. They should also be able to identify and appoint supporting team members.
It is likely that at the early stages of the programme, the Champion will need to take the lead in collecting data on, for example, costs and quantities of raw materials, wastes and energy and use this to identify resourcce efficiency opportunities.
What is the typical profile of a business champion?
The size, nature and culture of a company all contribute to deciding who should be the Business Champion. Large companies typically appoint a Champion who is familiar with the staff, processes, and technical, quality and environmental issues, for example, the Production Manager, Site Engineer or Quality Manager. In smaller companies, the Champion is often the MD or Production Manager.
It is important to choose the right person to be the Champion. The key characteristics should be
- enthusiasm for the role and willingness to learn
- credibility at all levels of the company
- communication skills to organise resources, meetings and training
- the ability to motivate staff, overcome barriers, resolve problems and continue with progress
- the ability to communicate with staff and senior management and provide feedback.
What is the value of teams?
Only by ensuring that employees from all areas are involved, can a company successfully integrate resource effiiency into its culture.
Ideally, teams should be cross-functional - people with different roles and experiences will bring different skills and ideas, and will ensure a wider buy-in to the programme. Team working will also lead to the identification of ongoing opportunities for cost savings.
Why is awareness important?
Poor staff awareness on resource efficiency is common. It is important to raise awareness to stimulate staff participation and encourage others to become involved. To raise awareness and get buy-in, staff need to be given the facts about the true cost of waste, how the programme applies to them as individuals, and the benefits of resource efficency to the business.
Why is motivation important?
Poor staff motivation is also a common barrier. A key role of the Champion is to motivate staff and ensure that people know the reasons for changing the way they work. Ideas on resource efficiency savings are often made through employee feedback. Regular feedback to staff on progress will also aid motivation. Incentive schemes can be extremely effective to improve and drive motivation of all staff. The type of incentive is dependent on company size and culture and could comprise a financial payment, small prize or personal recognition.