In a period where businesses' environmental and social responsibility is scrutinized more than ever, adopting sustainable strategies is a necessary task for leaders. However, implementing them can appear expensive, invasive, and disruptive, with uncertain benefits. Often, leaders see the need to make tradeoffs between sustainable action and other business needs. All of this signals roadblocks to adoption.  

At Emerald Built Environments, we understand that both taking the first steps and committing to continue the journey is hard work. We know that even if businesses want to be more sustainable, it takes significant social and financial buy-in to make the necessary changes. Yet, we are clear that when business leaders commit to creating sustainable change, they do realize the benefits they seek. That's why we focus on helping our clients articulate the long-term sustainability outcomes they want. When the vision is clear, sustainable action is easier. In short, we help our clients turn the sustainability they envision into reality with concrete plans and action.

The Driving Forces Behind Sustainability 

It is important to understand why a company is looking to improve sustainable performance. This basic understanding allows us to meet companies where they are, recognize their viewpoint, and tailor specific services to meet their needs best. At Emerald, we generally have clients contact us for one of three reasons:  

Curious About Benefits 

The journey towards sustainability and ESG often starts with curiosity, with businesses exploring the potential benefits of integrating sustainable practices — whether that be improving their public image or reducing operating costs. This curiosity is well-founded, considering the increasing body of evidence supporting the profitability and resilience of sustainable businesses. Additionally, there is no shortage of media highlighting how important sustainability is becoming for consumers, investors, and regulators.  

Clients come to Emerald to understand how these benefits can be replicated in their context. At this stage, we help clients take the first step. When it comes to their business, we help them develop a sustainability roadmap with input from their key stakeholders. When it comes to their buildings, we help them evaluate their current design and operations against desired future states with energy models, energy audits, and facility assessments. Through both, we provide our clients with a baseline of their current performance and identify what benefits they can capitalize on — and what resources are needed to take the first step. 

Committed to Change 

Clients already committed to sustainability come to Emerald for expertise in achieving tangible results. In some cases, clients may already have internal sustainability programs and want outside help optimizing them, or they want external funding, like government tax credits contingent upon meeting sustainability criteria. 

Regardless, these clients are ready to jump in and know what they want to achieve. They often require certifications, detailed reporting, a revamped sustainability strategy, or more comprehensive service bundles to deepen their sustainability commitments. 

Reacting to Risks 

On the other side of the spectrum are companies looking to improve their sustainability as a reaction to the consequences of previously failing to implement ESG criteria. This can be regulatory, reputational, or operational setbacks. In these reactionary cases, audits are typically the best starting point to identify where the initial failure was and how to improve it. 

Emerald's Four-Step Process: Facilitating Client Engagement 

Knowing what drove the client to us, we follow our four-step process to create and implement a business-specific strategy to achieve the client's goals. This process is the foundation of how we run all of our projects and is the core component of turning initial interest into concrete action.  

By developing an individualized strategy for each company, we can directly align with their needs, incentivizing them to give the commitment needed to implement the necessary changes and programs. 

1. Listen & Strategize 

The initial step is about understanding the client's objectives and limitations — understanding why a client is coming to us is wrapped into this phase. The primary method is to openly discuss with the client's team and stakeholders to grasp their requirements, boundaries, and potential challenges.

This step is crucial in crafting a strategy that addresses the client's concerns and targets what matters to them. In a larger business context where over 60% of strategic plans fail, this tailored approach helps ensure long-term success. 

2. Evaluate & Plan 

Next up is all about developing goals and strategies to reach those goals. This includes choosing performance metrics, long-term targets, and effective programs that resonate with the client's company. It is a collaborative effort that requires input from all levels of the company and key stakeholders. By involving the different groups that will implement the plan, there is more team buy-in, setting the stage for faster adoption and less resistance. 

3. Implement 

In the implementation phase, strategies are transformed into action, and theoretical plans meet practical execution. It is critical that there is ongoing collaboration between Emerald and stakeholders to ensure that the project stays on track and all parties continue to be part of the discussion. Additionally, we track key performance metrics and regularly report them to stakeholders. This allows progress to be highlighted and issues quickly tackled as they arise.  

4. Test & Measure 

Finally, having accredited sustainability professionals testing and measuring previously identified performance metrics on a scheduled basis is crucial for assessing the effectiveness of the programs. This allows the development of actionable recommendations that further optimize and tailor strategies to better align with client expectations.  

Additionally, this is a critical part of gathering data for annual reporting, which is often the primary way companies communicate their progress with external stakeholders. This ongoing involvement of a knowledgeable team of consultants fosters continued engagement from the client.  

Emerald's Role in Facilitating Sustainable Action 

While each step plays an important role in engaging businesses in the sustainability process, Steps 1 and 2 are the points where companies commit to the change. This is where companies give the initial buy-in and get the ball rolling. We use this period to develop recommendations that directly align with client goals while addressing their concerns. Steps 3 and 4 work to ensure the company commitment remains strong, progress is reported to stakeholders, and strategies stay on track. Essentially, this period is about maintaining and optimizing.  

One of the main reasons our four-step process is so effective is that we focus on clients who come to us already wanting to make a change. We don't need to focus on convincing them that sustainability programs provide value. Instead, we can focus our efforts on developing unique strategies to help them meet the sustainability goals they want for their company. Not only does this allow us to solely focus on developing the best programs, but it also means clients come to us already wanting to be more sustainable.

Yet even with a base level of desire to be more sustainable, it can be challenging to go from the initial interest stage to full commitment — whether due to cost constraints or concerns about implementation. This is where our framework comes into play, helping develop tailored strategies that align with each client's goals and challenges, making sustainability programs more achievable and impactful. We Are Your Team. Learn how we can support you in taking sustainable action.