Virginia Business Magazine goes green for the April issue. (No, the paper doesn’t feel recycled, but the stories are all about the greening of businesses around the Commonwealth.)
Like every piece ever written about the subject, there’s a ubiquitous “Not-easy-being green,” Kermit-the-Frog reference (p.25).
The thing is, it’s not that hard to go green. Virginia Business Magazine failed to mention that recycling is cheaper now for most companies in Richmond than throwing away refuse, especially for offices that consume mostly paper. That’s a big change, and BizSense broke it here. But is also demonstrates the power of incentives.
Companies go green when they perceive it to be in their financial interest or in the interests of the decision maker. In most cases, doing so will cut costs, improve workplace culture or help sell products by improving a company’s image. Want more employees to walk to work? Give them a $25 gift certificate each month to Starbucks.
But with all the PR/marketing huzzah about going green, separating fact from spin is tricky. CarMax, for example, claims its Goochland HQ building is green. It even has a special designation from some fancy certification board. But the building is at the edge of the metro area, far away from public transportation and population centers. That means most employees have to drive out to Goochland – which isn’t very green even if you call it so. Nice try.
But nothing stimulates conservation like $3.50 per gallon gasoline. Wait till it hits $4. Then we’ll see CEOs biking to work. And there’s nothing greener than peddling the old Huffy to the office.
Of course, we’ll probably have to read about how the company is going green, and how Kermit the Frog is the CEO’s favorite Muppet.
Virginia Business Magazine goes green for the April issue. (No, the paper doesn’t feel recycled, but the stories are all about the greening of businesses around the Commonwealth.)
Like every piece ever written about the subject, there’s a ubiquitous “Not-easy-being green,” Kermit-the-Frog reference (p.25).
The thing is, it’s not that hard to go green. Virginia Business Magazine failed to mention that recycling is cheaper now for most companies in Richmond than throwing away refuse, especially for offices that consume mostly paper. That’s a big change, and BizSense broke it here. But is also demonstrates the power of incentives.
Companies go green when they perceive it to be in their financial interest or in the interests of the decision maker. In most cases, doing so will cut costs, improve workplace culture or help sell products by improving a company’s image. Want more employees to walk to work? Give them a $25 gift certificate each month to Starbucks.
But with all the PR/marketing huzzah about going green, separating fact from spin is tricky. CarMax, for example, claims its Goochland HQ building is green. It even has a special designation from some fancy certification board. But the building is at the edge of the metro area, far away from public transportation and population centers. That means most employees have to drive out to Goochland – which isn’t very green even if you call it so. Nice try.
But nothing stimulates conservation like $3.50 per gallon gasoline. Wait till it hits $4. Then we’ll see CEOs biking to work. And there’s nothing greener than peddling the old Huffy to the office.
Of course, we’ll probably have to read about how the company is going green, and how Kermit the Frog is the CEO’s favorite Muppet.