People and sustainability

Whether implementing an individual sustainability initiative or transforming an entire business operating model to embed sustainability, those who are seeing the greatest results are those who are actively embedding sustainability into their people strategy. A fully engaged workforce is essential to achieving sustainability targets, and sustainability itself can be a significant driver of employee engagement, with positive impacts on recruitment, retention, motivation and, ultimately, productivity and the bottom line. Without employee support, an organisation’s sustainability strategy risks being perceived as an empty public relations exercise, which can ultimately prove costly to a company’s reputation.

Sustainable strategies can only be implemented effectively if individuals understand what constitutes sustainable behaviour and are incentivised to behave in such a way. This means defining desired behaviours clearly and adjusting key performance indicators to include sustainability targets. Our services include:

• Mobilising leadership
• Engaging and communicating with employees
• Education to embed sustainability into ‘business as usual’
• Incentivising, rewarding and recognising employees

At an organisational change level, sustainability has a role to play as both a catalyst for and an enabler of organisational change. Regulation and customer and employee demand for sustainability are increasingly becoming the primary drivers, but embedding sustainable practices into any change programme can increase motivation for the change among key stakeholders.

Sustainability becomes a more meaningful concept if applied to an organisation in its entirety. To run a genuinely sustainable business model, organisations need to integrate all the various strands of a sustainable approach – from green IT to waste management to efficient use of energy to sustainable sourcing. Although the concept is clear, many businesses are not sure which changes they should make as a result of their search for sustainability.

A well planned shift towards a more sustainable operating model will involve significant organisational and behavioural changes. PwC can help clients using a well-established framework and methodology for managing business transformation. Designed to be flexible in its application, the framework provides a route map for implementing the strategic, people, process, technological, structural and facilities changes required to implement new or amended business strategies.

Built on 15 years of sustainability and climate change experience, Our aim is to help clients achieve lasting behavioural change and embed sustainability fully into their people strategy.