HR representatives have begun to see that there is a green wave on the horizon. However, is it a fad or will it dictate the future for HR teams?
The complexity and speed of the various changes of our VUCA (volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous) world have impacted the role of HR departments in many organisations. A gradual shift from HR administrators to decision makers has become visible. And, in recent years, the COVID pandemic has proved to be the catalyst for more flexible and stronger HR departments.
While stability and security are still very important to employees and potential candidates, environmental consciousness, sustainability, and corporate responsibility are ranking high as decisive criterion for job selection across Europe. HR representatives have begun to see that there is a green wave on the horizon. However, is it a fad or will it dictate the future for HR teams?
What do the experts say?
Gabriele Andratschke, Head of HR at GrECo Group, hosted a virtual roundtable discussion with experts from across the HR industry.
We looked at the complexities of ESG requirements, how the new trend for all things green is impacting HR departments, and its relevance to the organisations of tomorrow.
Green HRM [Human Resource Management] refers to all aspects and practices [of HR management] that pursue the goal of environmental sustainability (source: Dron, Müller-Carmen, Obereder, 2018).
Defining green HR and the HR department’s role in green transformation
Green HR can be defined by the cultural shift towards an eco-friendlier and more sustainable organisation and corporate culture. This includes practices, policies and initiatives by HR, and a strong employer brand. Recruiters are noticing that green factors are gaining relevance in job interviews, regardless of age group and generation. The wish to make an impact and do a meaningful job also includes being part of an eco-friendly and sustainable organisation. Even if the topic of green culture is not yet predominant in job interviews, it has become relevant when employees need to be retained.
It is becoming more and more important for me to work for an employer who is socially responsible for our planet.
Green HR initiatives – how are recycling and carbon footprint related to HR?
In recent years, several green initiatives have become more commonplace in organisations. For example, systems for waste disposal to facilitate recycling, paperless policies in offices, solar panels on the roof of office buildings, or a new means of saving energy are just some of the measures that spring to mind. These measures have not traditionally been associated with the HR department, yet our round table discussion agreed we are seeing a turning tide in this regard. HR is beginning to create mobility packages which they promote among the management board and employees alike. These packages are designed to financially support the reduction of the corporate carbon footprint, and may include e-cars as company vehicles, job bikes or job scooters, as well as contributions to public transport or even mobility benefits payouts, if they are not fully used.
You always have to grow and do more and be more innovative.
Slowly, slowly, catchy monkey! Transforming HR one step at a time
It is HR’s task to create working environments where healthy and environmentally friendly habits are promoted that will attract people who are interested in sustainable topics. To achieve this, organisations must start with a few key initiatives and add more as they go along. These small steps, or at least initially small steps, need to be closely linked to the corporate culture and made visible to create the impact that is desired. It is not about singling out one initiative, but rather ascertaining that the company is taking its ESG responsibilities seriously.
I think the most challenging thing is to recognise the steps we have already taken and are currently taking. Sometimes we have already implemented something which contributes towards our eco goals, but it’s not widely acknowledged. We must be brave and do things that could potentially trigger a transition in the role of people and culture. Push things, do them, develop them.
No one is as deaf as the man who will not listen
Actor Ian Somerhalder once said: “going green doesn’t start with doing green acts, it starts with a shift in consciousness, and this is exactly where HR can make a difference – dealing with the people: listening to them, approaching them as a group and on an individual level – and then bracing ourselves for their feedback which may not always be as positive as we might hope for. It is all about listening to the positive and negative voices, acting accordingly, and convincing people, making them understand, and winning them over to HR’s initiatives.
HR has become a crucial part of an organisation. It is the people who count, and we need to place people in the right places to participate in the transformation. HR will act as a disseminator and is at the centre of the communication.
Time for a complete overhaul?
During the roundtable discussion, it became clear that in many cases HR departments are already making great strides in terms of green initiatives; we need to be careful not to throw the baby out with the bath water! We simply need to make visible what is already in place (and shout about it!). The legal framework of ESG reporting will help HR departments to do this. The HR experts all agreed that complying with the EU’s and the differing European local government’s legal frameworks causes a lot of additional work and is creating barriers to be overcome. They were also in agreement that ESG is an opportunity to demonstrate existing and future achievements to attract not just investors and shareholders, but more importantly people. Organisations can use ESG as leverage to transform the corporate culture and to make a difference environmentally in a more collective way. It is a chance to build a strong employer brand and to speed up the transformation.
“[ESG initiatives] should also be anchored in our company strategies and in our company cultures. Then, once it is, it’s very important to walk the talk at every possible opportunity. The whole thing, from my point of view, is really a joint journey. You cannot enforce it and say that from now on black will be white. It is a million baby steps which will lead us to the target, and it will become enriched along the way as we adapt to changing times.
We have to overcome barriers to make the green transformation as important as our economic outcome and financial results.
HR is but one drop but together we are an ocean
What HR has already realised is the variety of new skills and competencies organisations need to acquire to support their sustainability efforts. There will be entirely new job profiles not only to meet the additional workloads caused by reporting, but also to create new KPIs to measure the successful implementation of initiatives.
There is a new world full of opportunities, with so many new things in the pipeline. So, we must keep learning and incorporate new skills and competencies as we do.
Our people are key to the green transformation process. Learning programmes can help raise the awareness of recurring ecological topics, not only within organisations but in everybody’s daily lives: these include raising temperatures, severe weather conditions, and other natural catastrophes, to name but a few. If organisations make it their objective to invest time and money in educating their people, it will trigger the process of change. Employees’ mindsets will shift as they become more educated about how ESG topics are impacting all of us. By enabling people accordingly, they will contribute, convince others, promote change, and start making small changes towards a green mindset.
As a company you can only do so much, but the company is its people, and if each and every one of us plays our part, then we can bring green transformation to the next level.
The HR community is in the process of learning from each other, sharing ideas and best practices. In doing so, what has become clear is it is important to observe the personal boundaries of each individual employee by offering choices and providing them with the freedom to choose. Once we’ve achieved that, understanding the resulting facts and figures of those choices will support the transformation towards a greener mindset and make people act accordingly. What is more, if HR manages to present a business case based on employees’ choices, it will be easier to convince management boards of the importance of introducing and maintaining ecological measures.
Photo: Andrea Sojka
If you can show in fact and figures what you have done, it’s always your credibility joker.
The new faces of corporate ESG
However, HR alone cannot promote the openness to this learning journey; it needs ambassadors to help anchor the green mindset in the corporate culture.
As employees we have a big mandate to also be ambassadors for what we are doing at work. And we must also take opportunities to communicate what we are doing and why we are doing it to convince others to do the same.
So, who will be the role models that share their passion for all things ESG across the organisation? Interestingly, the group agreed that while there is a lot of generational talk in organisations, saving our planet is not limited to gender or one single generation. As we are becoming more mindful about diversity and green factors in our workplaces, we are learning not to be afraid to embrace new things. This isn’t just limited to our employer branding efforts, but also includes our efforts to attract potential new candidates, employee retention objectives and introducing the new AI “colleague” into our HR activities. Using the technology wisely will enable our HR teams to create green transformation milestones, as they learn how to master the new ESG requirements and learn how to implement them faster.
It became clear through our discussions that HR should use the chance ESG is providing to become a role model, a disseminator of green messages, to motivate employees and create a sense of belonging. By introducing initiatives that help employees to be proud of their company, it will encourage them to shout about them, turning each employee into an ambassador thus spread the word more widely which will, at the end of the day, translate to financial success.
Putting the focus on sustainability will increase employees’ pride of their company and this pride will drive engagement; and engagement drives profitability. Pride and the right engagement build profit, and this in turn leads to creating secure, stable, and sustainable working environments.
Sustainability efforts and initiatives are part of an organisation’s development and thus should be a top priority for management. When it comes to cost efficiency, HR needs to outline the costs of complex and long recruitment processes, as well as calculate the cost of employee retention, or rather the lack of retention. There are qualified people out there who are purpose driven and willing to make a change in organisations. Those are the people organisations want to attract. Therefore, HR must help management understand the link between green sustainability and its positive effects on long-term financial success and sustainable profit.
HR to lead the charge in a brave new world.
In conclusion, green transformation is not an HR fad. It is our future. To counteract the speed and complexity of the current changes to our working environments, HR must seize the opportunity to lead the charge for all things ESG which will in time create innovative organisations. In so doing, HR may also act as role models for companies who have not yet started on this path. It is essential to have senior management buy-in to support creative approaches and invest in projects and people development. ESG will be a huge opportunity for HR to further improve their standing within organisations, thus contributing to and promoting the cultural changes needed. As we become more open to new, brave ideas, people’s mindsets will change towards the benefits of a green corporate culture.
Who would not want to be in a company that builds the future?
Participants:
Bettina Augeneder, Head of Group Labour Relations, People & Culture Director, Coca-Cola HBC Austria GmbH
Susanne Dachgruber-Wanner, Head of Human Resources & Diversity & Inclusion, HDI Insurance, , Austria
Martina Ernst, Fair & Equal Pay – Salary Negotiations, HR Expert, , Austria
Ewelina Jaworska-Bien, Health & Benefits Expert, GrECo Poland
Jovana Pavlovic Radovanovic, Digital Learning Design Expert, GrECo Serbia
Dr. Raik Thiele, Labour and organisational psychology, Green HRM and Organizational Development Expert, Hikingdays, Austria
Sigrid Uray-Esterer, Co-Owner Job Twins, Austria
Gabriele Andratschke
Head of Group Human Resources
T +43 664 962 39 18
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