Why upskill your staff in green and energy efficiency skills?
The NSW Government is committed to supporting NSW businesses to operate more sustainably and to take up new business opportunities arising from the resource-constrained economy.
In recent years, consumer expectations towards the environment have dramatically changed. People now expect government and businesses, large and small, to set a good example. The 2009 Who Cares about the Environment? survey found that 78% of people in NSW are aware that climate change is happening with 69% believing that government should take urgent action on the issue.
By adopting simple measures and training your staff on environmental best practice, your organisation can become more sustainable - in both the economic and the environmental sense. Being sustainable can also protect your brand and reputation and generate new markets.
The opportunities for business are summarised below. Examples of the positive business outcomes of green skills and energy efficiency training can be found in our Training Stories section.
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The bottom line
There are immediate benefits in greening your business.
Saving on your water, energy, material and waste bills makes direct economic sense. Being able to effectively monitor these flows enables a business to be more responsive to changing needs and expectations, and give management greater control over costs.
Energy and other resource costs are widely expected to increase significantly in the near future. But Australian Industry Group's recent report Energy shock: confronting higher prices) [pdf 1.24MB] indicates that although businesses know this, not many are taking action to rein these costs in.
Companies have found that increasing efficiencies business-wide brings the greatest effect. Involving all levels of staff – from operations staff to the finance section – is one way to do this.
There are a wide range of industry specific courses available to help your employees develop more sustainable work processes and business strategies.
See contacts below for government-funded training opportunities.
Customer expectations
Green products and services create a point of difference that customer and business stakeholders are demanding.
Being able to track key sustainability indicators and improve performance over time is now often a requirement in tendering for government and corporate contracts.
By adopting a sustainability strategy and training your staff in its implementation, you will be better-placed to gain a portion of the burgeoning environmentally conscious consumer market.
A happier, more productive workforce
People work best when they are in a workplace they want to be part of. Businesses that are committed to the environment are attractive to employees.
Being environmentally responsible can help make you an employer of choice and can assist with recruiting top quality staff. Young people in particular have a high level of concern about environmental issues.
A green skills training program will help you retain good staff and promote increased productivity through higher levels of staff satisfaction. By investing in their professional development, staff know you are committed to them and the environment. People are more likely to stay in a job where they feel valued and appreciated.
A green skilled workforce gives you a unique advantage. Anyone can buy technologies, but they can’t clone your people.
Did you know?
87% of young Australian tradespeople surveyed recently were interested in green skilling (see Gen Green Survey by the Dusseldorp Skills Forum) [pdf 3.61MB]
Access to new business opportunities
The global shift towards a low carbon economy will change the way business operates.
Smart companies see sustainability as an engine for growth, while some companies see it as a penalty or sacrifice.
You can gain a competitive advantage today by providing innovative, environmentally friendly products and services.
For existing industries, new markets are already emerging:
- In the printing industry, water-based, low chemical printing is giving business a competitive edge.
- In building and construction, there is a need to retrofit and reduce the energy consumption of the current stock of commercial and residential buildings. A range of opportunities opening up in this sector, driven by building regulations, costs and government initiatives such as mandatory disclosure and tax breaks.
- For farmers, adopting environmental best practice leads to sustained production in uncertain times. New opportunities such as the proposed Carbon Farming Initiative and soil carbon sequestration also offer potential new revenues.
New eco-technologies, services and industries are in development and remain undefined – this is an area that is ripe for business innovation.
Did you know?
Overall global green markets are projected to double from US$1.4 trillion per year today to US$2.7 trillion by 2020. Roland Berger Strategy Consultants
Complying with environmental regulations
Many federal, state and local government regulations now require environmental measurement and reporting. Ignoring your environmental obligations can place your business in jeopardy.
The NSW Government has a renewable energy target of 20% by 2020 and both state and federal government have introduced legislation to reduce Australia’s carbon footprint. The Carbon Tax is scheduled to be introduced in July 2012, with an Emissions Trading Scheme to follow in 2015.
While small businesses are unlikely to have the tax imposed directly on their activities, there will be implications for all business which are part of larger supply chains.
Now is the time to get ahead of the curve and minimise the exposure of your business to rising costs by upskilling your workforce in energy efficiency and sustainability know-how.
Sustainability in Manufacturing
The Skills for Sustainability web site has been developed by Manufacturing Skills Australia to support the implementation of sustainability in enterprises and skills development using the the MSS11 Sustainability Training Package (see below). It highlights a range of issues, concepts and practical examples for people who want to improve the sustainability performance of their manufacturing business.
Did you know?
There are two new suites of qualifications in the MSS11 Sustainability Training Package, with three qualifications offered in Sustainable Operations and three qualifications in Environmental Monitoring and Technology.
