How to Create a Successful Environmental Employee Engagement Program

“Tell me, and I’ll forget. Show me, and I may remember. Involve me, and I’ll understand.” This Chinese proverb, which appears in the Environmental Employee Engagement (EEE) Roadmap released yesterday by Net Impact, captures the underlying human behavior driving the need for employee engagement programming within organizations.

Those of you who have waded into these waters know that designing and implementing a successful environmental employee engagement program is a tricky endeavor. Fortunately, the folks at TD Bank, along with our EDF Climate Corps fellow, Jie Pan, and BrownFlynn developed this EEE Roadmap to help you along this journey. It lays out a comprehensive plan to implement an EEE program that:

1. Clearly demonstrates how EEE helps to deliver core business results
2. Measures EEE program performance
3. Incorporates well-tested business strategy, change management and program management techniques into program design so that when launched the EEE program can quickly take root throughout a company
4. Inspires and empowers employees to be environmental leaders and stewards at their workplaces and beyond

As TD Bank has demonstrated, if employees are proud of their organization’s environmental achievements and aware of how they can build upon them, there are important business benefits including increased employee satisfaction, innovation, minimized waste and mitigated risks. The Roadmap begins with this focus on the business case understanding that effectively demonstrating how an EEE program will drive business results is critical to getting senior leadership “on the bus,” a metaphor that is repeated throughout the guide. It goes on to break down the steps involved in launching a successful EEE program:

1. Knowing your destination and identifying mile markers
2. Getting your passengers onto the bus
3. Recruiting new passengers

In each of these three sections, there are helpful tips and checklists, and scattered throughout the document are descriptions of best practices including getting quick wins, starting with one small action, segmenting audiences and measuring results.

The Environmental Employee Engagement Roadmap is written for a businessperson looking to launch an EEE program at their own organization in a way that will provide quantifiable business and environmental benefits. Here, at EDF, we’re delighted that this new resource is now publicly available. With interest in employee engagement continuing to grow among EDF Climate Corps host organizations, we look forward to seeing the success of this guide replicated in the months and years ahead.

Download the Environmental Employee Engagement Roadmap