Per studies by Merkle and Ginger, Corporate Sustainability and Wellness are going mainstream

• 70% of adults (18-55) care more about sustainability than they did a year earlier
• Further, companies are looking for ways to help employees address mental health
• 99% of CEOs are concerned about employee mental health
• 87% of employees report weekly stress, with 55% of this group reporting high/extreme stress
• 80% of CEOs believe poor employee mental health is negatively impacting worker productivity
• 59% of CEOs are concerned about the potential risk of a stress issue in the workplace
• 65% increase in employee use of technology-driven mental health-care tools in past year
• 76% of employees receive mental health support virtually

Edenark Group believes sustainability MUST include employee performance and wellness.  The Edenark Group ISO 14001 program is the world’s top environmental sustainability certification / carbon neutrality / ESG program for small to mid-sized enterprises and includes, via its A Better World Starts With Me program, a way for employers to help their employees become happier, healthier and more productive.

Lisa Ryan, host of the Manufacturer’s Network podcast, interviews David Goodman, CEO of Edenark Group, in Episode 14, titled, “The Profitability of Certified Sustainability”.

The interview discusses the value to a manufacturer, of becoming environmentally certified sustainable.

Then, for those manufacturers who want to investigate sustainability further and want to know what to look for in a good sustainability program for their company, this PPP provides answers.

You spend a lot of time and money trying to convince people to buy from you versus the other guy. 

But are you saying what they want to hear?

75% of Gen X and Gen Z (which combine for 64% of the world’s population and is the future of your business) say sustainability is more important than your brand name.

Similarly, 70% of all consumers will move their purchases to a certified sustainable company when they find one.  

This is why certified sustainable companies are growing 75% – 20x faster than their non-certified competitive peers and why so many companies are greenwashing (saying they are sustainable when they are not).  

So, next time you look at the invoices for your marketing program, think about what they are wanting to hear you say versus what you are saying.

Sea Coast Professional Window & Door( (https://www.prowinfl.com/ ), a Florida-based window and door sales and installation company has renewed its environmental sustainability commitment by renewing and extending its Edenark Group ISO 14001 sustainability certification through 2023.

The Edenark Group ISO 14001 is the world’s premier environmental sustainability certification program and allows SMEs (small to mid-sized enterprises) a program designed and priced specifically for them.

The program, which allows companies to progressively improve at a pace that works for their needs, helps the organization define how it interacts internally, externally, and with the environment.  It incorporates energy/waste/water, employee health and performance enhancement, community involvement, procurement and suppliers, compliance and regulations, emergency/security, and stakeholder engagement.  Benefits include creating a culture of continual improvement, stakeholder engagement, lower costs, higher revenues and profits, improved employee performance, and…… doing the right thing for the environment and current and future generations.

“We provide window and door design, sales, installation and service to residential and commercial clients in Florida and the Caribbean”, said Mike Modica, President of Sea Coast Professional Window & Door.  “We are a leading window and door installer and our products help reduce energy usage in the buildings we serve.  Environmental sustainability is important to our organization.  We have worked with Edenark Group for years and its leader, who has experience with high performance windows and doors, has the same high standards we have in our operation,” added Modica.

“When an organization pursues, and attains, the Edenark Group ISO 14001 sustainability certification, they are not just doing it to see their costs go down and revenues and profits go up.  They are setting a higher bar for their organization and sending a signal to all those around them,” says David Goodman, CEO of Edenark Group.  “They are agreeing to adhere to the world’s Gold standard for sustainability certification; are choosing to be a leader and part of the solution, not the problem; and are joining an elite fraternity of over 300,000 organizations, in over 150 countries, that have committed to continually improving in every way.”

Sea Coast Professional Window & Door can be reached at 954-636-6899

Edenark Group can be reached at +1 561.512.2257

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Here are the key findings from this Forbes 2023 survey on the state of sustainability:

43% of all companies consider sustainability a Top 3 priority (up from 26% in 2020)

The top 3 initiatives for these companies over the next 12 months will be

             Getting their supply chain (ie, you) sustainable

             Lowering greenhouse gas emissions (remember, you are part of their Scope 3)

             Reducing plastic waste

Companies with sustainability officers are more likely to achieve emission reduction goals

            For you, as a vendor, if they have a sustainability officer, expect a call on the above issues

Technology they believe will have a big impact on the future of sustainability

           Carbon offsets ranks #2.  Why that is important to you – you are a Scope 3 vendor

Biggest challenge

           Confusion on regulations and requirements

           Many of the standards they are working with are vague and hard to work with

Most sectors believe their efforts are helping the environment

The biggest concern we get from prospective clients is the perception that the Edenark Group ISO 14001 application process will be painful and take a lot of staff time.

In point of fact, Edenark Group does the vast majority of the application work for its clients.

This video is of an Edenark Group ISO 14001 client and provides an answer to this concern.

As an aside, not only did this client, Wholesale Payroll, become environmentally certified sustainable under the Edenark Group ISO 14001 program in 2022, but they also renewed their certification for 2023.

You are a certified sustainable organization and many of you have developed your ESG program.

As part of your mandate, it is your responsibility to demand your vendors also become certified sustainable, right?

But what happens? Either via your own procurement department or directly from the vendor, you hear – “We would LOVE to, but we are an SME (small to mid-sized enterprise with under 500 employees) and there are NO certification programs designed/priced for us. All the good programs are built for big companies and are too expensive and/or time-consuming for us.”

What do you do? Even though you know this is what your consumers want, and you have mandated, you shrug and accept it…..because you think it is correct.

Sustainability Magazine asked our CEO, David Goodman, to write this article explaining that you don’t need to blink.  You can satisfy your clients and your mandate.  There are global, audited, environmental sustainability programs designed and priced specifically for the needs of SMEs.

This article also explains what your SME vendors should look for in a program that will meet their needs; allowing you to meet your needs.

Given that Gen X and Gen Z account for 64% of the world’s population, these two demographic groups are the future of your company.

A key point to take from this article is that 75% of Gen X and Z consumers say sustainability is more important than your brand name.

• Think about your current marketing and advertising efforts, given the above statement. If 75% of the two largest global demographic groups, accounting for the majority of the world’s population, care more about your sustainability status than your brand name, what are you spending your advertising budget saying, in your attempt to differentiate and stand out?  Are you using a cute jingle or phrase to promote your brand name; or are you talking about being a sustainable company?

A second key point is that upwards of 40% of brands, trying to win those consumers, are misrepresenting their sustainability status.

• Therefore, if you decide to use sustainability as a talking point, do it right – become certified sustainable via a globally-recognized and respected program, as these consumers will do their research and the governments of the world are stepping up compliance.

A third key point is that a sustainable supply chain is critical.

• These consumers, and the government compliance agencies, are expecting your vendors to be sustainable; and presenting you with the opportunity, as a vendor, to differentiate and take market share by being certified sustainable.

Per this article in Bizcommunity, many job seekers, particularly the 23-38 age group) pro-actively seek employment in eco-friendly companies.

The key points:

• Sustainability and recruitment go hand in hand – Per Deloitte, with talent hard to find, not focusing on sustainability can lead to a company losing out to competitors who are.

• Sustainability creates a sweet spot for employees – When a company shows it cares for the environment and the world we live in, it shows employees it cares for them, too.

• Company reputation – The attraction of the best talent is heavily dependent on reputation and sustainability has a massively positive impact on reputation.

• The future is green – Companies that develop and maintain sustainable practices will be more resilient in the future. They will be able to recruit and hire from a larger pool than their non-certified peers.

SMEs (small to mid-sized enterprises) account for at least 90% of all businesses on the planet and employ at least 67% of all of us.

If you are running a SME, per many prior posts from us, and per this article from the World Economic Forum, change is coming to your business, whether you like it or not.

• Sustainability / ESG reporting standards and regulations are evolving fast

• These regulations directly impact larger companies…..but require them to seek data from their suppliers and the suppliers to their suppliers (which include SMEs)

• SMEs that fall behind risk losing valuable opportunities with big clients/prospects

• SMEs that fall behind risk losing the availability of capital (debt and equity)

If you want to remain competitive but don’t want to be ‘killed by the cure’ take a few moments to read this PPP. 

If it makes sense, reach out to us here.