If you want to raise profits, becoming more sustainable is a great way to achieve that.
This was probably the biggest message I got from the Sustainable Living Festival in Melbourne last weekend. And I also got a better insight into the most important step for becoming sustainable.
Build Your Community
At the very core of all companies that presented was the realisation that it is all about people. Rather than seeing staff as numbers who contribute to the bottom line, an appreciation of the individual and their contribution is needed.
Tim Cotter, a psychologist showed that human values are pretty aligned. The problem is that many people do not live their values.
So to raise profits, a company can raise awareness and support a re-connection between values and action. A fear many traditional business people (especially accountants) seem to have is that this process will reduce the company’s profitability and focus on more intangible things.
Reality paints a different picture. In various studies the return of companies that follow sustainable (or ethical) principals have outperformed their “traditional” counterparts.
Natural Capitalism is a book that shows how to raise profit while being sustainable.