New Video Series: From Strategy to Success – Ensuring Effective Implementation

Welcome, everyone. On Tuesday, I presented a webinar on Formulating the Framework – Designing Your Corporate Responsibility Program. We had a great turnout and very engaging questions. If you were unable to attend the webinar or would like to view it again, the video is available below or on the Resources page of my website. This webinar went deeper into the topics I covered in my January video series, Assessment to Action and Creating Compounding Returns.

The next video series I will be releasing in February will be From Strategy to Success – Ensuring Effective Implementation. Even a well-designed Corporate Responsibility program can fail without effective implementation. There are many factors that affect the outcome of sustainability initiatives, and properly managing these factors will lead to optimal performance and return on investment. This topic will culminate with a live webcast on February 25. Secure your seat on the webinar here.

If you want to take these topics to a new level and apply them directly to your organization, I will be hosting a seminar titled Corporate Responsibility Revolution: Strategy to Success on May 7, 2014 in Philadelphia. This interactive full-day seminar will provide a roadmap to develop and implement an effective Corporate Responsibility plan that supports a successful business strategy. The videos and webinars I am releasing should be used as prerequisite learning for this seminar and provide a core understanding and steps to take action in advancing your business. Registration is open for May’s seminar, and you can find more information on it here.

Be sure to subscribe to the blog (top right) to get email notification of my video releases and future webinars to continue building upon the content I have released. Also, use the link below for more details on the seminar and reserve your spot today. I hope you are enjoying my content and keep coming back for more.

– Tad Radzinski PE, LEED AP, SFP

Links:

Register for next month’s webinar.

Catch up on my videos

1.       Assessment to Action

2.       Creating Compounding Returns

Learn more about the May 2014 seminar.

Designing Your Corporate Responsibility Program – Creating Compounding Returns

Welcome, everyone. Today we continue in our January video series, Formulating the Framework – Designing Your Corporate Responsibility Program. The video below, titled Creating Compounding Returns, is focused on designing a sustainability plan that uses savings from operational improvements to fund further sustainability initiatives. This is especially important when your Corporate Responsibility budget is limited or the future of a sustainability plan is based on quantifiable results.

Generating Compounding Returns is about first finding the “quick wins” that provide cost savings or deliver sources of revenue in your sustainability program. These successes bolster management support and provide additional funds that can be reinvested to reach further sustainability goals. Funding sustainability through sustainability establishes a system where the returns on investment compound and grow collectively.

This video offers some easy first steps to get a quick win, and we will examine this topic in depth in the upcoming webinar on January 28. Be sure to subscribe to the blog (top right) to receive updates on posts and other complimentary resources. Also, if you are behind in the program, you can view all the previous video and webinar series on my YouTube channel.

– Tad Radzinski PE, LEED AP, SFP

Links:

1. Register for the Webinar: Formulating the Framework – Designing Your Corporate Responsibility Program
2. My YouTube Channel

Ideas Worth Spreading

Hello, everyone. I was honored to be selected to deliver a TEDx Talk at Villanova University in November. The video of my TEDx Talk was recently released, and I couldn’t be more thrilled to share it with you! The link to view can be found below. In my talk, Closing the Loop – Manufacturing a Viable Future, I reflect on the many issues facing our production and economic systems today and going forward. Designed to educate and inspire, I focus specifically on population growth, resource consumption, and waste production as key factors that will affect the future viability of our system.

The TED Talks motto is “ideas worth spreading”, which is aligned with my personal mission of using education to drive change. Please feel free to pass this along to anyone you think would benefit, and take a look at all the valuable TED Talks available online. I hope you enjoy my video, and make sure you check out the Resources page on my website for more complimentary content on Corporate Responsibility.

– Tad Radzinski PE, LEED AP, SFP

Sustainability Professionals Emerge as Organization Leaders

I recently came across a great report titled Managing Organizational Sustainability: The Business Case for Sustainability Professionals in the Workplace published by McGraw Hill Financial Global Institute. This report finds that demand for sustainability professionals has grown substantially throughout the years and is projected for increased growth going forward. As Corporate Responsibility programs become fundamental in both the public and private sector, staff positions focused on sustainability continue to emerge. The unique skill set these jobs demand, along with the cross- functional placement in the organizational structure, make sustainability professionals key candidates for top-tier leadership roles.

Succeeding as a sustainability professional can be difficult with fewer than 300 universities worldwide offering master’s degrees in sustainability (according to the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education). The shortage of educated professionals in this field presents a significant opportunity to the dedicated individuals who invest in their expertise in Corporate Responsibility. I always tell my graduate students at Villanova that the education they are receiving in sustainability will set them apart and empower them to drive tangible change in their organizations.

Although most organizations create Corporate Responsibility programs as a result of direct or indirect pressures from the public, customers, shareholders, suppliers, investors or regulators, management support for these programs is heavily based on measurable results. For a sustainability program to be deemed successful, the initiatives undertaken must support organizational goals and strengthen existing business plans. Optimizing the results of Corporate Responsibility programs, and monetizing these initiatives, has been a central focus throughout my diverse career in the sustainability field. The ability to quantify and demonstrate actual results of a Corporate Responsibility program is essential for personal and organizational advancement and continued funding.

If you are looking to enter the sustainability profession, expand your existing knowledge, or maximize the value of your current sustainability program, check out the free resources I have offered the past few months for some guidance and best practices. I will also be leading an interactive, full-day seminar on May 7, in Philadelphia that I am sure you will find beneficial. This action-oriented program, Corporate Responsibility Revolution - Strategy to Success, will provide 30+ years of comprehensive insight and practical tools to develop and implement a Corporate Responsibility program that furthers specific organizational goals.

Stay tuned next week for the second video in the January series, Creating Compounding Returns. If you missed the first video check it out here: Designing Your Corporate Responsibility Program Part 1: Assessment to Action.

– Tad Radzinski PE, LEED AP, SFP

Links:

1. Managing Organizational Sustainability: The Business Case for Sustainability Professionals in the Workplace
2. My Free Resources on Corporate Responsibility
3. Seminar: Corporate Responsibility Revolution – Strategy to Success

Designing Your Corporate Responsibility Program - Assessment to Action

Welcome, everyone. I hope you had a safe and happy holiday season. We start 2014 running with the next video and webinar series: Formulating the Framework – Designing Your Corporate Responsibility Program. This series will focus on developing your sustainability program using the information from benchmarking operations, sustainability assessments, and materiality analysis. The first video in the series, Assessment to Action, can be viewed below.

As discussed in the Materiality series, creating your organization’s specific Corporate Responsibility program and prioritizing goals should be based on the issues most material to your company and stakeholders. Addressing critical issues first allows you to better prepare for long-term success in the short term.  In the video, I reference Ford’s most recent materiality matrix. Ford has used a materiality matrix for several years to develop their corporate-wide sustainability strategy, which demonstrates the value of identifying material concerns for both long-term and short-term strategy development.

The next video in this series will focus on prioritizing Corporate Responsibility within your organization in order to maximize return on investment. This is important because properly planning sustainability projects enables you to use resulting financial savings to fund further improvements and generate compounding returns.

Following the next video, I will be conducting a live webinar on Tuesday, January 28, that will provide further insight on designing your specific Corporate Responsibility program and also give you the opportunity to ask me questions directly. Be sure to register for the webinar and subscribe to my blog for email updates.

– Tad Radzinski PE, LEED AP, SFP

Links:

1. Ford’s Materiality Matrix
2. Catch up on previous videos and webinars.
3. Register for the January webinar now!