Energy Saving Staff
However committed you become to cutting your energy use and wastage, unless your staff are on board your success will always be limited.
Staff have a big role to play:
- They are key energy users themselves (at home as well as at work) and how they use equipment at work will obviously effect the quantity of energy used.
- They can act as energy watchers - making it part of their routine to turn off unused lights and equipment, spot opportunities for extra insulation or draft proofing, catch dripping taps etc.
- They can encourage your customers to be more energy conscious.
- They can make customers aware of your environmental measures - and improve your image.
Raise awareness
The first step is to get staff to relate to becoming energy conscious. The best way to do this is to introduce them to some facts and figures about climate change and energy usage. You can do this through presentations at staff meetings, through printed factsheets, online resources, podcasts that they can listen to or through internal or external training events.
Map a route to energy efficiency
The second step is to identify the current energy usage of your business and the realistic targets for cutting this. Staff need to know where the energy is currently going and what measures, big and small, your business is taking to cut energy use. But they also have a lot to contribute - they are on the 'front lines' of your business and once you've raised their awareness they have a critical role to play in identifying wasteage and finding solutions and alternatives.
It is essential that you map out realistic routes to cutting energy use and that you give staff specific roles and tasks that are clearly identified. It is also important that you make them aware of measures being taken that they aren't directly involved in, like switching to green tariffs, insulating the roof etc, so they can be enthused by the overall picture.
Again, you can do this through staff meetings, presentations, printed, online or audio material or through specific training days.
Give ongoing feedback
Provide feedback on a regular basis about your business' energy usage, and how well you are doing with your targets. This is the only way that staff will know how effective their efforts are. If you don't provide feedback they may think that your energy initiatives were just a flash in the pan and they will quickly revert to older, less energy vigilant approaches.
Make an energy update a regular part of your staff meetings, newsletters, induction packs and in-house training days.
Energy use is part of your overall green approach
It helps to focus on specific areas in order to give staff clear roles and responsibilities. However, energy consciousness is just one part of the green puzzle and any training you give staff should be in conjunction with training on water usage and recycling.
Start with the interview
Conserving energy, water and waste needs to become second nature to be truly effective. Encouraging existing staff to change old habits needs a patient and long term approach. But you can give your whole green initiative a boost every time you take on new staff.
New staff, properly inducted in your green approach will not only themselves help to conserve energy, water and waste but, through their example, will help older staff be more effective too. At the interview include questions about a candidate's attitude to conservation and outline your business' approach. Then make sure that green training is part of the induction and all in-house training thereafer.
Suggested next step:
Quick Links
- Go to the Green Tourism Business Scheme website
- Use Business Link's environmental compliance tool
- Find business advice on the Envirowise website
- Find environmental regulations for tourism businesses on the NetRegs website
- Find out more about local food at the Local Food Works website
- Visit Northumbria Larder for regional food ideas
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