THE PATH TOWARD
EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT
“ SUSTAINABILITY CHAMPIONS ARE FOUND THROUGHOUT CORPORATE HIERARCHIES.
THEY HAVE PASSION ABOUT SUSTAINABILITY AND THEY ASPIRE TO PERSUADE THEIR
COMPANIES TO BECOME MODEL SUSTAINABLE ENTERPRISES. THEY WANT THEIR
COMPANIES TO BE A MORE POSITIVE FORCE IN THE WORLD.
“
- BOB WILLARD, THE SUSTAINABILITY ADVANTAGE
Engaging Employees
through Sustainability
In many ways, the sustainability challenge is a leadership challenge.
Research shows that employees who are passionate about
sustainability at home would like to see those same practices
valued at work – these are sustainability champions. Often times,
they hold junior or middle management positions in their
organizations and lack the authority to effect real change. However,
in this case, leadership is a role, not a position. Sustainability
champions lead by example and use their influence to engage the
right people to make change happen.
By forming what are commonly referred to as “green teams”,
sustainability champions use their collective power to examine the
sustainability of office practices and create innovative solutions.
This gives each employee an opportunity to play a pivotal role in
their company’s sustainability story.
For instance, eBay’s Green Team encouraged the company to build
San Jose, California’s largest commercial solar installation, reducing
CO2 emissions by over one million pounds and saving over
$100,000 annually.
The same holds true for smaller companies with much less
manpower. In 2008, employees from Burt’s Bees (now part of
Clorox) took part in an event called “Dumpster Day”, which was
held to educate employees about waste reduction. Trash destined
for the landfill was collected for two weeks, after which employees
donned Hazmat suits and divided the trash into three groups:
items that could have been recycled but were not, things that were
recyclable if the company had an outlet for them and garbage.
Dumpster Day saved approximately 2.8 tons of trash from landfills
and found recycling opportunities that cut the company’s waste in
half, while generating $25,000 in estimated annual savings.
Participation can be as simple as getting together to discuss
observations, like an increase in the number of disposable coffee
cups being thrown out in the break room.
What is the Business Case
for Employee Engagement
through Sustainability
According to the National Environmental Education Foundation,
companies with an emphasis on employee engagement through
sustainability saw improvements in talent attraction and retention,
employee productivity, community recognition, customer attraction
and retention, a culture of sustainability and, finally, brand
strength.
“
There are testimonies from hundreds of companies, including
Wal-Mart and McDonald’s, that have invested in engagement
through sustainability and education that has proven to be more
valuable than expected.
©2012 Domtar Corporation. All Rights Reserved.
In honor of Domtar’s first EarthWeek, the EarthChoice Ambassadors, along
with President and CEO John Williams, dedicate a cherry tree at the Fort Mill
Operations Center. (Photographed - 2012)
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However, the return on investing in green teams is often reflected in intangible value to the business,
which can be difficult to qualify. For example, an educational lunch and learn session requires a
budget and connecting this type of education to sales can be a challenging. In spite of these
obstacles, the first 18 months of engagement through sustainability at Domtar has resulted in positive
feedback from employees as they begin to take ownership of Domtar’s sustainability story. And,
Domtar’s CEO is supportive of this initiative and encouraging its success.
Earth
Week
it’s
at Domtar
Domtar’s Story
Domtar EarthChoice® embodies Domtar’s belief that informed choices lead to better, more sustainable
lives and a better world. Domtar chose the name EarthChoice Ambassadors for its green team as an
extension of that philosophy.
Domtar created the EarthChoice Ambassadors program in 2010, with the intent of launching a
sustainable employee engagement pilot program in the Fort Mill, SC Operations Center; an office
building housing approximately 500 employees. Building the business case for green teams is a
relatively new concept and Domtar’s strategy was to start slow and build on small successes. A formal
commitment was made in the company’s 2011 sustainable growth report - as a key performance
indicator - to expand the Ambassador program throughout our facilities by 2020.
EarthChoice Ambassadors
Mission Statement
Domtar’s EarthChoice Ambassadors are committed to promoting sustainable business practices
focusing on our Customers, Employees, Company and Community.
By identifying and sharing innovative methods, educating and encouraging sustainable work habits
and leading by example, this group strives to push Domtar’s sustainability message throughout
our organization.
Chapter Size and Logistics
Within the first year, the Fort Mill team doubled in size. In an effort to create a sense of exclusivity, it was decided to keep the group at a
maximum of 20 participants. It is believed that a smaller sized group fosters creativity and a stronger commitment from its members.
Employees were actively recruited from business sectors and management levels that were underrepresented.
Domtar has administrative locations, paper and pulp manufacturing facilities, converting facilities, regional replenishment centers, distribution
and personal care, therefore logistics and communications between chapters is important. Whereas all EarthChoice Ambassadors have the
same mission, each chapter works on projects and goals that are location-specific. For example, the Kingsport, TN chapter chose to participate
Domtar’s Starting Point
After determining our pilot location, we worked with human resources to develop a multi-question survey to provide a baseline of sustainability
awareness at Domtar. We solicited survey participation from over 500 employees at our pilot location. An excerpt from the survey is as follows:
• What does sustainability mean to you?
• Do you believe Domtar should do more to enhance its commitments and practices towards sustainability?
• In the office, do you turn off your lights and computer at the end of the day?
• Do you currently volunteer?
• What types of sustainability projects would you like to see implemented at Domtar?
• Would you be interested in serving on a Domtar Green Team?
The data collected indicated that there was interest in sustainability and a population of employees who were passionate about creating
awareness and a more sustainable work life. The survey also acted as a recruitment tool by providing interested employees an opportunity to
create and serve on a green team. Ten employees volunteered and worked to launch the first EarthChoice Ambassador chapter in the
Fort Mill, SC Operations Center.
©2012 Domtar Corporation. All Rights Reserved.
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DOMTAR
EARTHCHOICE®
EMBODIES
DOMTAR’S BELIEF
THAT INFORMED
CHOICES LEAD TO
BETTER, MORE
SUSTAINABLE
LIVES AND A
BETTER WORLD.
Initial Projects
in a clean-up event for the
Kingsport Greenbelt as one of
their Earth Week projects.
The first order of business was to determine the “low hanging fruit”
and how smaller projects could be used to propel the team toward
bigger ones. For example, in the fall of 2010, the Fort Mill office was
using approximately 28,000 styrofoam cups in their break rooms
each year; all of which were destined for a landfill. This created an
opportunity to provide each employee with a reusable cup, and
discontinue the use of the styrofoam cups. The cost of the reusable
cups was essentially equal to the cost of a year’s worth of
styrofoam; so the savings would be realized after just the first year.
Conversely, some projects work
nicely for all locations. In the fall
of 2011, the Montreal
Ambassadors created a
rummage day where all
employees were encouraged to
bring in items that were no
longer used, but were in good
condition, for a swap meet. The
Fort Mill Ambassadors took that
concept and called it Freecycling
– the act of giving away usable,
unwanted items for free instead
of throwing them away. All
employees were invited to
“shop” and take any items they
Other qualifying smaller projects included:
• Replacing plastic utensils with recyclable, starch-based options
• Initiating and encouraging bottle/glass/can recycling
throughout the buildings
• Holding educational lunch-and-learns for employees
• Chapters are encouraged to have 2 to 4 sessions/year
wanted, with no limit on how much could be donated or taken. All
remaining items were donated to a local charity.
• Lunch-and-learn topics are determined by location, but
are generally focused on sustainability at Domtar; for
instance, Domtar’s NGO collaboration
A SharePoint web site is maintained for all EarthChoice
Ambassadors to exchange best practices, and share articles and
meeting notes from all chapters. There are pictures of each
ambassador, their location, role at Domtar and a statement about
why they are an EarthChoice Ambassador. All of Domtar’s
employees have access to this site, but it is used primarily for
communications between Ambassadors and chapters.
• By providing lunch, these sessions often attract
employees who may not be engaged and recruit
new members
• Establishing the EarthChoice Hero program, which recognizes
colleagues who are doing great things at home, in the
community and at work - but are not EarthChoice
Ambassadors themselves.
In the Domtar model, the Sustainable Engagement Manager acts as
• Establishing a single-use battery recycling program
• Placing “reminder” labels at each light switch encourages
employees to turn off lights as they leave a room
a hub, and the chapters are the spokes. There is one designated
captain per chapter who is responsible for facilitating meetings,
recruiting Ambassadors and encouraging goal setting. Captains are
responsible for reporting goals, activities and accomplishments to the
Sustainable Engagement Manager.
Chapters are encouraged to meet monthly and develop regularlyscheduled activities engaging all employees in sustainability
at Domtar.
Challenges
Having multiple chapters in different
cities poses the added challenge of
maintaining consistency of the
group name and logo throughout
the chapters.
©2012 Domtar Corporation. All Rights Reserved.
Visible, senior-level commitment is crucial to the success of this type
of engagement. But it can be challenging when mid-level
management is not seen as supportive. To use a term commonly
referred to by sustainability thought leaders, mid-level management
can easily become “clay” – nothing penetrating up or down. The
EarthChoice Ambassador program worked through this challenge by
recruiting mid-level managers to be on the team, building on the
support we already had from several top-tier leaders.
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Another challenge is the difficulty some members have taking time away from
their job responsibilities to attend meetings. In the Fort Mill Operations
Center, there are customer services representatives whose time away from
the phone is limited. Monthly midday meetings, with lunch provided, helped
to overcome this challenge. Now entering its second year, the group is
established and the recruitment of mid-level manager support has helped
make taking time to participate on this team more accepted.
Having multiple chapters in different cities poses the added challenge of
maintaining consistency of the group name and logo throughout the
chapters. We found that each location has an innate pride and desire for a
unique identity. Although we don’t want to discourage individual pride and
identity, we continue to work towards a consistent brand and collective
mission in each chapter.
Vice-President of Sustainability, David Struhs, and Sales Service
Representative, Elsa Guzman, declare their EarthChoice during EarthWeek
2012. (Photographed - 2012)
With a growing network of Ambassadors, each bringing passion and
enthusiasm for sustainability to the program, the challenge will be to
maintain momentum, while keeping in synchronicity with Domtar’s overall
sustainability KPIs. We think this is a great challenge to have.
Communications and Branding
While each EarthChoice Ambassador chapter has projects unique to its location, Domtar wanted the branding and look of the group to be
consistent. Just as the EarthChoice Ambassador mission complements what Domtar EarthChoice stands for, the logo is an extension of the
Domtar EarthChoice mark.
This mark appears on all green team communications, including emails, printed materials, posters, banners and any other form of marketing
materials associated with the EarthChoice Ambassadors.
Examples of communication efforts include:
Blog –Domtar’s President and Chief Executive Officer, John D.
Williams, has blogged about EarthWeek and other EarthChoice
Ambassador events on the Domtar intranet. Top-down, visual support
is critical to the acceptance rate of the masses.
Company Newsletter – The company magazine Resources regularly
Annual Report – At the close of the Ambassador’s first year, the
Name Plates – Each Ambassador receives a name plate to be hung
team produced an annual report to showcase its activities and
progress throughout the year. This report was distributed to all
employees, including senior management.
outside their work area to recognize them as an ambassador. This
has generated recognition and pride in the program.
Email Blasts – The EarthChoice Ambassadors use email as a way to
Ambassador team received personalized letters from John D.
Williams, acknowledging their passion for this initiative and offering
his support.
inform, invite and remind about events or to make announcements for
individual location.
features articles on EarthChoice Ambassador activities. This is an
important vehicle to keep the entire employee population updated on
green team activities.
Letters from our CEO – Each member of the inaugural EarthChoice
At Domtar, employee engagement through sustainability is a function of the Sustainable Business and Brand Management Department. This
unique group has the ability to sell thought leadership throughout the company and to customers because its primary function is
communication; all the while, working closely with human resources, corporate communications and environmental leadership to ensure that
corporate goals are being met.
Conversely, in many organizations, employee engagement is often a function of the human resources or the sustainability department. It’s been
Domtar’s experience that the three working in conjunction with one another is key to the success of an engagement initiative. The
communicators within a company have visibility across the organization and Domtar has leveraged that to launch employee engagement
through sustainability successfully.
Sources
The Green Workplace, Leigh Stringer
The Sustainability Advantage, Bob Willard
National Environmental Education Foundation
Center for Responsible Business and Sustainability
©2012 Domtar Corporation. All Rights Reserved.
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