SME Steps to Sustainability
Getting Started
Getting started
In this section, we'll explore
What sustainability is
Why it is relevant for your business
Rating how sustainable your business is today
How to develop a sustainability strategy, the first step to help making your business more sustainable
Why is sustainability important for business
Sustainability isn’t just about doing the right thing for the environment and for society, it’s about doing the right thing for your business – to sustain it into the future. Click on the video to learn more.
AIB Steps to Sustainability – Getting started
AIB Steps to Sustainability – Getting started
Rate your business
This will take you approximately 15 minutes to complete
Rating your business will help you understand how sustainable your operations currently are and will provide you with a starting point on your sustainability journey.
This exercise will highlight the areas where you’ve already taken sustainable action , but also help you identify areas for improvement - which you can focus on and factor into your sustainability strategy.
Download the Rate Your Business template to get started.
The starting point for every business will be different, with no GOOD or BAD rating – but rather a position that can be built upon and improved over time.
Sustainability Strategy
After rating your business, you now know your starting point on your sustainability journey – and hopefully you will have identified some of the areas where there is room for improvement.
To really drive progress, many businesses find it beneficial to draft a formal sustainability strategy – which can provide structure to future plans by:
Setting out the overall sustainability ambition for your business.
Documenting what areas of sustainability are important to your business.
Having business owners / senior management commit to taking action.
In the rate your business exercise, you reviewed your business's sustainability performance under the themes of:
- Sustainability Management
- Operations
- Our People & Communities.
The first step in your sustainability strategy should be to review these topics so you can consider which areas to focus on in your plans. You can select as many topics as you like, or you may decide to focus on just one or two topics. It is your choice. The important thing is to consider what is important for your business which will feed into the actions you will take to improve them.
Some guidelines for your sustainability strategy document:
• Statement of company purpose and mission: Clearly define your core purpose and values, demonstrating how sustainability is woven into your business mission.
• Statement of commitment to sustainability and engagement with stakeholders: Show your dedication to creating positive change while building trust and collaboration with stakeholders, from employees to customers.
• Key Topics: In the rate your business exercise, we considered sustainability performance under (i) Sustainability Management (ii) Operations & (iii) Our People & Communities. Review these topics so you can consider which to areas focus on in your plans. You can select as many topics as you like, or you may decide to focus on just one or two topics. It is your choice.
• Management commitment to provide resources: Show commitment to the allocation of resources, demonstrating a genuine commitment to sustainability initiatives.
• Management commitment to review: Show commitment to regularly reviewing and refining your sustainability strategy to keep it relevant.
• Signed by business owner/management: Highlights the importance of leadership, as a signed statement from top management/business owners signals true accountability and commitment.
Next step: Create an action plan
Now that you have rated your business, we can help you to decide what actions you can take to bring your plan to life.
More steps to sustainability
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