Talking sustainability: The role of HR in environmental governance

Sustainability matters to employees. Aligning business practices and the values of employers with those of employees can improve business performance across the board – and HR can help get there.

When we think of sustainability as a business goal, we might think first of the practical, operational aspects – eliminating plastics, for example, or any other kind of environmental intervention. Equally important, though, are the conversations and communication pathways that get these ideas from the individual minds of an employer or employee to the earth. This is where HR comes in.

The internal sustainability communication pathway is two-way – from employees to employers and vice versa. Both of which can be mediated and encouraged by HR professionals.

In the past, we’ve covered the importance of value alignment between employers, employees, and the community. It’s so significant, in fact, that more than 90 per cent of people are willing to sacrifice some pay to do more meaningful work. Let’s consider how the issue plays out in the specific case of sustainability and how HR can help, or hurt, sustainability alignment.

Value misalignment

People care about the environment, and this much is clear. Aaron McEwan, vice-president of advisory at Gartner, said: “There is currently a huge opportunity for HR leaders to build a stronger culture of sustainability and realise these engagement benefits.”

What Mr McEwan was referring to was a recent study by Gartner, which found that organisations with a strong culture of sustainability can enjoy gains in employee engagement of up to 43 per cent. This is nothing to scoff at as highly engaged teams show 21 per cent greater profitability and report stronger mental wellbeing, not to mention enjoy lower turnover rates and stronger employee loyalty.

Though there are gains to be made from commitments to sustainability, generally, the picture is more nuanced when adding an alignment dimension. Put simply, it matters to employees whether they feel their own values are being mirrored in company policy and operations.

“When we live in alignment with our values, we’re energised. When we’re not acting in alignment with them, it’s very draining,” Kelly Michael, co-founder of Map of Me, told HR Leader.

When our work and the broader impacts of the company we work for align with our values, it’s easier to bring our full selves to the role. Given the benefits of value alignment, the sustainability picture appears particularly bleak. While 67 per cent of employees consider sustainability-related issues to be highly important to them, only 16 per cent say their organisation has the “knowledge, mindset, and behaviours” needed for a strong sustainability culture, said Gartner. Clearly, this is a case of value misalignment.

Getting this right often comes down to employee input and feedback at the design stage: “Involving employees in co-defining what sustainability means for the organisation is critical, as well as in prioritising initiatives that meet corporate goals,” said Mr McEwan. “HR leaders must ensure all employees have a clear understanding of the organisation’s sustainability goals, as well as how they can contribute.”

Bringing HR into the fray

Employee connectedness, said Gartner, is a big piece of the value-alignment puzzle and who better to connect employees than HR professionals?

At current, there is a disconnect between employees and their managers when it comes to sustainability. Only 39 per cent of employees believe their manager cares about their professional goals related to environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) issues, said Gartner. It’s partly up to HR professionals to help smooth over the differences and ensure employees’ values are being understood and acted upon by management.

“Managers are creating a bottleneck, which, in many cases, unintentionally limits employee engagement and ultimately strains the sustainability culture,” said Mr McEwan.

HR can play a central role in alleviating the pressures on managers and in helping to identify the unique values of their employees.

“When employees can see, understand, and contribute to their organisation’s sustainability objectives, HR leaders and managers reap the benefits of increased engagement, and organisations will be closer to achieving their goals,” said Mr McEwan.

To support and integrate sustainability into daily business practice, HR professionals can use the following tools:

• Engagement techniques focused on an open and transparent communication style.
• Motivational theories based on extrinsic and intrinsic values.
• Inspiring regular meetings, in accordance with the principles of respect and understanding.
• Applying analytical ability to rethink functions to align them best to where the organisation needs to head.