How Green is your Business?

I have been a big proponent of green living. And, I want every one of us to ask the question – how green is my company? I am not talking about celebrating St. Patrick’s Day. I am talking about being environmentally friendly as a company.

Here are a few simple suggestions for creating an environmentally friendly work environment.  I feel that most of them are self-explanatory and easy to follow:

• Switch to low-energy lighting in office buildings. And, make sure that you turn off all the lights if you are the last person to leave the office.
• Reduce office commute. Be supportive of people wanting to work from home - may be once a week if it doesn’t affect their daily output. Encourage carpooling and provide incentives for taking public transportation.
• Try virtual meetings and conduct business online. There are meeting that can be done without having to meet in person.
• Reduce printing. Print drafts back-to-back and buy recycled paper. Produce double-sided marketing collateral.
• Have recycling waste baskets throughout the office. If you cannot reduce or reuse, please try to recycle.
• Try to get fax on your computer instead of printing them. Avoid printing to view e-mails if you can manage without it.

All these suggestions are not only environmentally-friendly, they also help your company save some green!

PS: I see that the “Green” e-mail signature file is becoming more and more popular “Please dont print this e-mail unless you really need to.”