Corporate India is warming up to Green Technologies for business competitiveness and cost efficiency. Though this paradigm shift is primarily driven by cost reduction needs in all segments, today, Chief Information Officers of more and more companies and customers are looking ahead towards products and solutions that consume less power, and are easy to recycle. Companies today understand the importance of green products, and it makes business sense to them. They have realised that the impact on the environment can be minimised with the improvement of several business practices. Most of these can be identified simply by looking around the office and evaluating how workers use paper documents. Therefore, while going completely paperless isn't a realistic goal for most companies, decreasing paper use or going “paper-light” is a strategy that gives good results. Here are some pointers to move to a green office.

BUILDING A GREEN TEAM

One of the best ways to get environmentally-friendly initiatives off the ground is to empower employees to lead the charge. A simple step of harnessing the energy of the workforce to create a “green team”, a management-supported and self-empowered group of individuals who share a common goal of educating, supporting and seeking changes that will reduce the environmental footprint — things that align with the company's sustainability goals, and enable environmental improvements and cost savings or productivity improvements through everyday practices. Green teams can gain support and build momentum within the company by following these 5 simple steps:

Select a leader: This person should be energetically committed to the programme, passionate and willing to manage others. Seek out management support: Getting support from the boss and setting a tone from the top management will ensure access to the information and resources needed to succeed. More importantly, it will help make sure the team's efforts are forwarding the overall goals of the company.

Recruit green team members , but start small: Send out an open invitation or target people that are outwardly enthusiastic regarding the programme and able to commit time to help spearhead the effort. Limit the number of Green Team members. A team with more than 8 people might get bureaucratic and it might be hard to come to a consensus on important decisions and course of action. Share roles and expectations , early: Be sure the team members are in sync with the mission and requirements to get there. Set goals and measure results: Plan out the next 12 months. Determine what needs to monitored in terms of progress made. Start with easily attainable goals. The best way to foster success is to demonstrate success early on and usually the momentum will build from there. Share the results with the larger community — the entire office, and extended group or the whole company. The initial idea might become a programme or process adopted by the entire company.

MAKING IT EVERYONE'S BUSINESS

Small businesses are accustomed to coming together and doing whatever it takes to get the job done. As more small businesses work to consume less energy, work smart and preserve natural resources, looking to their employee base to help implement change is an obvious starting place. Here is what every employee can do in the office to make their small business greener: Turn off your computer when it is not in use. Set your computer's monitor to low power mode after 10 minutes of non-use. Turn off the lights and office appliances when they are not needed. Wear comfortable, seasonal clothing appropriate for changes in building temperature. Share other energy savings ideas with your co-workers. Therefore, with simple yet effective methods, one can bring in a green revolution within offices. And in this process of ushering in a green revolution within the system, one can not only increase productivity, but also build up a case of being responsible to the environment and bring sustainable growth within the organisation.

(The author is Executive Director, Technology, Channel & International Business, Xerox India.)

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