Shifting to Green HR Management: Why will it benefit both your department and your organization?

Author: Francesco Dato, PHRi, Senior Consultant at CARRHURE

Green Human Resources Management is a concept that was recently introduced to HR Management, and that was not only introduced to organizations but also to HR Management Programs. But what is Green HR Management? And how is it different from traditional HR Management?

From double-sided printing to encouraging employees to use less paperwork, Green HR Management are all the practices that are encouraged by the HR Department in an organization in order for it to become eco-friendly. Think of an organization that consumes a lot of papers in order to print documents. Green HR Management would be the practice of encouraging the employees to recycle these papers by writing on their blank side or by using them again for printing. On a large scale, that would not only benefit the environment since paper consumption is reduced by 50%, that would also benefit your organization, since you would be doing a saving of 50% on your purchases in paper.

But how can the HR Department encourage employees to adopt eco-friendly practices? And what are the actions that the HR Department can take in order to start with these practices from within? We will start by looking at how can each HR function adopt eco-friendly practices, and then we will see the crucial role of the HR Department in the shift to an eco-friendly organization, or Green HR.

Green Recruitment/Talent Acquisition

Part of recruitment is hiring employees that align with the culture of your organization. That is why when adopting new measures in order for your organization to shift to a more sustainable and eco-friendly approach, it would be crucial for the recruiters to hire new employees that are conscious about the importance of an eco-friendly work environment. That is why integrating questions about eco-friendly procedures in your interviews would be a great start not only for your department but for the whole organization to shift to Green HR Management.

Green Training and Development

Although recruiting employees that have the same values as those of the organization is important for Green HR, it is also very important to take your current staff into consideration too. Through green targeted training and development, you can instill a Green Culture into your organization. You could raise their awareness on the usage of office equipment (using less paper for example), proper waste disposal and recycling techniques… The training and development themes that you could find in the field of Green HR are limitless.

Green Reward Systems

An efficient way to instaure a Green culture in your organization would be through Green Reward Systems. Encouraging your staff to adopt a Green Culture through rewards will not only make this transition process a smoother one, but you could also be more creative and make these rewards of an eco-friendly nature. Think of glass water-cups, glasses or bottles made of glass, which is totally eco-friendly since it is less hazardous for the environment than glasses made of plastic, and printing your company logo would be a great way for marketing your brand. In addition to that, you would reduce waste in your organization which could be generated from the usage of disposable plastic cups.

Green Initiatives

Finally, why don’t you choose a business day in which your staff would do a Green Initiative and give back to their community? For example, you could take them on a campaign to raise the community’s awareness on the importance of adopting eco-friendly practices, or you could even offer to help your community by choosing a special day in which your staff would collect their large thrash items (tables, televisions, etc.) and properly dispose of them. Not only this would give your employees an opportunity to bond together and to help their community, therefore would increase your team spirit and employee motivation, this would also benefit your organization’s image in the community.

Today, the world is looking for ways to reach a more sustainable environment, and to be conscious of environmental issues that are threatening our planet. Through adopting these simple Green HR measures in your HR Department and in your organization, not only you are going to benefit your department, but you’re also benefiting your company through reducing waste of resources and improving it’s image, you’re improving your image in your community, raising your staff morale, and finally doing something good for the planet and contributing in saving it. By adopting Green HR practices, you could be the next champion of the planet.