14 DAY TRIAL // Up until now, the main drive behind companies' choosing to adopt a more environmentally-friendly agenda had to do with cutting down on electricity costs and diminishing the ecological footprint of various activities.
However, a recent investigation carried out by specialists from UCLA's Institute of the Environment and Sustainability, and from the UCLA Anderson School of Management, argues that companies that compel their employees to pay more attention to environmental issues also benefit from increased overall performance levels.
These findings, published in the Journal of Organizational Behavior, show how people working in green-oriented companies are roughly 16% more productive than average, primarily because they develop stronger interpersonal relationships.
In case one was wondering what strong interpersonal relationships have to do with green-oriented behavior, it seems that most of this bonding occurred whilst the employees were undergoing training meant to teach them the ins and outs of environmental protection.
Moreover, this study argues that such companies have significantly more motivated employees, simply because their showing concern for the wellbeing of the planet leads to a so-called halo effect.
To cut a long story short, people feel that simply by working for one such company they are, in fact, contributing to environmental protection.
Therefore, they are both more excited about coming to work, and they do their best in keeping up the pace so as to abide by the standards set by the company's management.
As Professor Magali Delmas puts it, “It's truly a big difference between firms that have adopted these practices and firms that haven't. I expected a contrast, but not such a strong, robust jump in productivity.”
Furthermore, “When you talk now to M.B.A. students, there's a big change in the way they look at their future job. They don't want to work just to make money. They also want to make a difference. There's a little more social consciousness than there was before.”
Hopefully, the findings of this research will determine more companies worldwide to adopt an environmentally-friendly agenda.