2020 & THE ENVIRONMENT: it's time to act, but how? 

At Advanced UK, we're demonstrating our commitment to the environment, and we're helping our clients take positive steps to implement positive and effective change. It's time to act!

In this blog series, our own environmental evangelist, Humperdinck Jackman, explores a range of technologies and services which Advanced UK has launched to contribute to a better future for us all.  

Whether you live in the City of London or rural England, damage to our natural environment affects us all: from the increased risk of flooding, to the surge in childhood asthma, the warning signs are there for all to see. And yet, as you trek to your office, consider whether your organisation has contributed to some positive improvement? 

In this new decade, we're going to see much more emphasis on corporate accountability, and the rate of change will be bewildering for many. The Bank of England's Mark Carney sounded the alarm in December 2019 ahead of him starting his new role as United Nations special envoy for climate action and finance.

Mark Carney said, “The concern is whether we will spend another decade doing worthy things but not enough... and we will blow through the 1.5C mark very quickly. As a consequence, the climate will stabilise at the much higher level”, before adding that unless firms woke up to the climate crisis, many of their assets would become worthless.

It's not just 'high finance' which must change, because your own business is in the firing line too. As environmental awareness forces change upon the £-trillion hedge funds (change driven by profit, not altruism), there will be a trickle-down effect as the entire supply chain adapts. This is going to lead to rapid changes in your clients gauging your  suitability as a supplier: you're going to be measured by additional criteria, such as the waste you generate, and your actual carbon footprint. Simultaneously, consumers - the electorate - are pressing upwards and governments - both local and national - will react. Change is coming, and it's going to be dramatic. 

Has your organisation been punished already? There is evidence that the ethical conduct of companies is influencing the purchasing decisions of customers. In a recent survey by Environics International, more than one in five consumers reported having either rewarded or punished companies based on their perceived social performance.

Appoint a CSR Officer

Corporate Social Responsibility - CSR - doesn't just happen, it takes drive. CSR covers the environment, care of employees, the community, and extends through to your civil society. To make positive change, the best starting point is the appointment of a CSR officer - a volunteer within the organisation who has access to senior management, and who can prioritise the objectives.

How easy is it? In December 2019, Advanced UK delivered an alternative to Secret Santa which proved to be hugely popular with all staff (indeed, we had 100% participation). In this example of corporate social responsibility, we reduced waste by not purchasing nonsense gifts within the office, and we 'put back' into our community.

The 10 benefits of robust CSR 

The United Kingdom is entering the decade with the highest number of people in work, together with an unemployment rate so low that there's a labour shortage. Often, it's the potential employees choosing the employer, and with our younger population being so environmentally aware, we must adapt to attract the best talent. In this vein, your CSR credentials become a tangible asset to help your organisation.

A strong CSR program delivers results, so how many of these ten CSR benefits can you recognise in your own organisation?

• Improved financial performance;
• Lower operating costs;
• Enhanced brand image and reputation;
• Increased sales and customer loyalty;
• Greater productivity and quality;
• More ability to attract and retain employees;
• Reduced regulatory oversight;
• Access to capital;
• Workforce diversity;
• Product safety and decreased liability.

First steps to effective CSR

In this series of blogs, I'm going to be introducing some challenging environmental CSR concepts. Several aren't easy to implement, but not because of technological barriers, but because of management mind-sets. 

Let's open the year with the 'easy wins', the low-hanging fruit, as sales people like to call it.

1. Social: Adopt a charity or two

At Advanced UK, we support the Weir Archer Academy. This fine community organisation develops wheelchair-bound athletes and gives them the training and support they need to reach their potential. 

We also have an active team who drive support for McMillan Cancer Support, and our colleagues are forever bringing cakes and other treats to the office for the enjoyment of everyone.

You can read more about these superb charities, and some of the other organisations we support in this article, and take a look at more of our activities here.

2. Energy: Choose 'smart' office equipment

Your office printers are wasteful. The good news, is that best accounting practises give impetus to their replacement every 3 years or so. So on your next upgrade, why not adopt the most eco-friendly devices on the market?

Many Xerox products meet or exceed the requirements of the world's most widely-recognised certifications for product environmental performance — the international ENERGY STAR, UL's EcoLogo eco labels, and Germany's Blue Angel. Xerox's eco label products provide environmental benefits without compromising performance, quality or reliability. And the energy- and paper-saving features of these machines bring value, efficiency and flexibility to your work environment.

3. Waste: consume less paper

There is much to discuss on this topic, but why consider robotic process automation, document management, and many other technology investments before implementing the most basic improvements to your office policies?

Simply use a print driver that makes sustainable printing easy. Adjust your print driver default settings to automatically print on both sides of the sheet. Deselect the cover sheet and you’ll avoid printing a sheet unnecessarily. If you want others to know it’s your print, select the watermark option and you can place your initials or some other identifier on the sheet in a conspicuous fashion. Consider also an intelligent print management application such as PaperCut, a truly global market leader.

In the next articles

Creating an environmentally friendly business doesn't happen overnight, so over the course of these ten blog posts, you will encounter ever more complex approaches ranging from implementing effective teleworking,  through to document and process automation.

We will also be introducing you to the most innovative and sustainable approach to ensuring that for every piece of paper that you print, the appropriate number of trees are planted in return. It's brilliant!

Advanced-UK is here to support you

At Advanced-UK, we have the pan-European experience to deliver and support the most sophisticated MFP fleets, and we'd be pleased to to help you explore these latest innovations.

There's more in our Artificial Intelligence series - have you read:

• Artificial Intelligence - An Introduction
• Artificial Intelligence and Language
• Artificial Intelligence and Invoice Fraud