Blog Post

How to Get Started: Step 1

  • By Kevin Foley
  • 31 Mar, 2019
This is the 3rd article in our three-part “Intro to Sustainability Series” and will explain how to get started on your sustainability journey.

If you have not read Part 1 and Part 2 of this series, we suggest you go back and read them. They will give you a solid understanding of what sustainability is and why it is important for organizations like yours.

The Most Important Step

The first and most important step you can take when setting out on your sustainability journey is to create a “Sustainability Program Roadmap.” A sustainability program roadmap is a single document that contains all the essential elements needed to design, launch and grow your sustainability program. A well designed roadmap will help you navigate your journey and guide you safely to your final destination.

However, before you begin building a roadmap, it is important to have a basic understanding of a few essential characteristics of your organization and its operations.

Before Getting Started

In order to create a meaningful roadmap should first have a clear understanding of the following:
  • How your business uses resources (water, electricity, natural gas, etc.) 
  • Your organization’s overall mission and values 
  • Your organization’s financial structure and tax appetite 
  • The capabilities of the personnel within your organization 
If you do not have a basic understanding of these elements, we suggest you do some data gathering. Knowing this information will be essential to creating a roadmap that is both practical and effective.

Creating Your Roadmap

In order to help you on your journey, we've developed a sustainability roadmap guidebook. The guidebook will help your business develop clarity and structure around its sustainability efforts. The guide will define exactly what a roadmap is, who it is for, why it is important, and how to create it. It will also detail exactly what content must go into a sustainability roadmap.

To learn more about the sustainability roadmap guidebook, please contact us.

Call to Action

Achieving any major goal, whether in life or business, requires thoughtful planning and disciplined execution. Your roadmap will help you with the planning and inform the execution. Planning is essential to ensuring your actions have a massive impact. You must exercise patience and discipline, just like a chess player plotting his or her next move.

Eleanor Roosevelt once said, “The future is literally in our hands to mold as we like. Tomorrow is now.” Use your roadmap as the starting point in your efforts to mold the future of your organization. It is the starting point for leveraging your resources, increasing profitability and gaining a competitive advantage.

We hope you enjoyed the article. Please let us know if you have any questions or would like help getting started.
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