GREEN BUSINESS VIEWS

Posts Tagged ‘certified green consultant’

Michele Moran found a career that provided a more fulfilling way to invest her life as a Certified Green Consultant for the Green Business League.  This New York native has been a successful stock broker with impressive credentials, and has now transitioned her energies to become a Green business consultant.  This lends credence to the growing need for trained, professional guidance for businesses considering a Green and Sustainable program.

Michele Moran of M and M Green Solutions, Inc proudly speaks of her life choices and the positive aspects of a career that provides a much needed service to the community.  Her services include a Green business assessment that validates all Green practices currently in place and a carefully mapped program (Sustainability Report) that details the needed steps to achieve an authentic Green business certification.  Area Green businesses are then linked together to create a business network designed to encourage business among those firms committed to a Green Supply Chain.

The GBL Green Business Certification is quickly becoming the premier certification program for businesses across America because it is the only audited certification program.  Various Internet certifications suggest that an audit can be self-assessed, but this is entirely misleading and disingenuous.  Trained professionals provide a service that cannot be effectively accomplished by amateurs.  The benefit of cost savings and substantial return on investment comes from a professional Green business application.

The Green Business League is proud to have consultants like Michele Moron as a part of the largest field force of Green Consultants anywhere.  There are more than 300 Green Consultants nationwide, in Canada, in Mexico and various countries providing Green certifications for business.  Businesses may request a free Green business assessment by applying at the Green Business league website.

It seems that every original has its imitations. A genius idea will always generate a variety of look-alikes. The concept of a Certified Green Consultant was made popular by the Green Business League who has trained nearly 300 consultants in the US, Canada, and several countries. The Green Business League had the insight to file for the for the federal trademark for this concept, and now is the only company with rights to this name. A Certified Green Consultant is best defined as a trained professional whose primary task is to assist others to install Green practices. A Certified Green Consultant is not someone, like a LEED AP, who plans and promotes Green buildings. The basic task is to show any family, business, or agency how to practice Green in the daily operation or activities common to all of us.

It doesn’t matter if you own the building or not. What is happening inside and around that building is a huge factor in the over all Green impact of the community. Going Green is about people and how people behave. The Green consultant endeavors to change the behavior which is probably a little more difficult than planning a few Green improvements for the building. Changing our behavior is not as easy to fix as replacing a thermostat.

There are literally hundreds of Green Practices that can be integrated into any business, and many of them are not nearly as expensive as remodeling projects. Energy reduction can be accomplished by buying Energy Star equipment, tearing out old lights, and replacing them with new, more efficient lights. However, there is a good percentage of energy savings that comes from workers who are taught to be more diligent about power use. Failure to turn of lights and equipment when they are not in use is the result of lazy and untrained people. Even a powerstrip for a workstation does no good if the worker doesn’t use it. Dozens of power paks common to all workers steal power every day and add to the monthly electric bill.

A trained Certified Green Consultant uses an extensive assessment program to discover Green practices already in place, and to suggest other Green practices that can be accomplished without radically changing the business process. Just to clarify our terms, we see the Certified Green Consultant as the professional working with many businesses and projects in the community. The Certified Sustainability Officer is more of an in-house professional doing many of the same things as the Green consultant, but within the confines of his or her company’s limits.

Of course, we must mention the “other” look-alike program that crop up routinely on the Internet. Most of these programs offer little more than some online training and the opportunity to subsequently sell their line of Green products to others within the consultant’s influence. Any audit or assessment is merely a ploy to collect enough information to suggest the products that the Eco Consultant, Earth Consultant, or Green Consultant might have to offer. Any reasonable person must discount these programs as little more than a modern version of the old multi-level programs.

A trained Certified Green Consultant is not a product-pusher. He or she offers the initial Green assessment to discover the level of Green compliance already in place. Every Green application is assigned Green Points according to the value of the product or service. The Certified Green Consultant discusses some proposed ideas that will add enough Green Points to achieve a Green business certification using a nationally-recognized standard.  The GBL Green Point system prevents the cheating temptation known as Greenwashing.   This is a very prevalent practice where companies pronounce themselves Green because they install a few token Green ideas.  See the Green Pig Syndrome for further explanation.

Certified Green Consultants may be a new idea today, but the day is approaching when they will be as crucial to business as an efficiency expert or accountant.  There is simply too much involved to hand off this duty to the same person or committee that plans the company picnic.  To determine the effectiveness of the Green consultant or the sustainability officer, we find that the creation of a comprehensive Sustainability Report is the proof of quality of service.  This is echoed in President Obama’s executive order #13514 that requires this of all agencies using sustainability officers.

The fundamentals are now becoming clear for any Green business certification.  There is a need for:

1. Green business certification is proven by a live audit is required to eliminate Greenwashing
2. A Green Consultant or Sustainability Office is needed by all businesses
3. The Green or Sustainability Officer should produce a quality Sustainability Report
4. A Green business is not a static concept but is evaluated at least annually
5. A national standard must apply to all businesses claiming to be Green certified

While Internet logos are popping up nearly every month, only one Green business certification fulfills the spirit of EO13514 and meets the qualification shown above.  The Green Business League now fields more than 300 Certified Green Consultants trained and capable of performing Green assessment and audits.  There national standard cannot be fooled by Greenwashing tactics, and seems likely to endure as the only credible Green business certification in America and in international applications.

Fighting back after years of negative impression, Going Green is not anti-business, too much trouble, or a poor investment.  As with many new programs, the Green business agenda did not emerge fully developed.  It was often faulty, awkward, and didn’t live up to expectations.  I had three sons who took time to turn into wonderful men as they matured into adult life.  Of course, they all had moments when I wondered if they wouldn’t self-destruct.  Green business is still in its infancy, but quickly emerging into something that we can all appreciate.

The loose belief  has been that Green was boldly anti-business and the haven of treehuggers.  Sustainability was the stronghold for the pragmatic business was the opposing side of the environmental street. This misguided beliefs made Going Green seem like a begrudging concession by business to a program that is merely an accommodation rather than a smart business decision.  This kind of latent negativism is not right and needs a new visitation to this subject.

Going Green is about the health impact of the workplace.  Sustainability is about the better management of our resources.  These are positives that every business can embrace.  What we are now realizing is that the necessary changes are not just good for the environment.  The investment in Green and sustainable practices has a payback that can be calculated in both soft and hard numbers.

Let me also point out that there have been a number of self-appointed and narrow-interest Green advisers who have not given business a holistic and pragmatic solution for the Greening of a business.  For example, buying carbon credits will not make a company Green because the company in question is still pouring carbon dioxide into the community.  The carbon credits are merely penance for their abuse.  If a well-designed sustainability plan is developed by a Certified Green Consultant, the orchestration of Green practices will achieve more than a Green operations.  It will undoubtedly save a company a great deal of money.

Whether a company retains a Certified Green Consultant or trains an in-house Certified Sustainability Officer, the multiply benefits are not just found in a passion for the the environment.  There is also the marketing value of a company that demonstrates corporate responsibility which is a great way to appeal to a worried world.  A healthier, less antagonistic workplace will certain discourage lawsuits from suffering employees.  However, every business is concerned about the return on investment.  Does it really pay to Go Green?

So, here’s the basic facts.  If business uses less electricity, less paper, less fuel, less water, and creates less trash; profits are increased.  If a healthier workplace and workers are empowered, doesn’t productivity reflect in more revenues?  If more customers are attracted to a Green certified company, won’t the annual report look better?  If energy rates go up, isn’t efficiency a increasing asset?   If the cost of trash is figured at $65 a ton with an escalating future cost, isn’t it a good idea to reduce packaging and cut paper use?

The investment in a Green business is certainly a noble effort, but it has potentially robust financial returns.  There is an efficiency that comes to doing the job in a committed and complete fashion.  This does not come from amateur efforts, but through the solid and professional advice of someone trained to create a sustainable plan.  It is fair to say that the ROI for a well-done sustainability plan is 12-24 months compared to LEED projections of 15-20 years for construction projects.  Going Green the right way is not just an investment.  It can be one of the best efficiency investments you might make.

Green business is often different from what most think.  In many cases, Green business is the best way to promote or market a business.  By touting a Green virtue within the company, the promoters wish to convince the world that they are a Green business worthy of your business.  Part of the problem is that there is no real definition for “Green Business.”   Therefore, the phrase can be configured to mean nearly anything with a Green attachment.  This is what can honestly be called “Token Green,” which means doing the least possible to be included in the Green business definition.  An authentically Green business embraces the environmental issues more fully bringing Green practices to every part of their honestly Green business.

As mentioned before in various articles, a business may also be “Green by Proxy” meaning that there is little real change in their daily operation expect the purchasing of solutions created by others.   Buying Green cleaning products is one example.  Purchasing carbon credits is another way to borrow a solution from someone else without making real change in the operation creating carbon emissions.   It might be nice to give money to some worthy environmental cause, but that will not create a Green business either.

This kind of shallowness is part and parcel of the newness that we all have the many various on environmental issues faced by all people on this earth.  We’ve even invented a new word for those who over-hype the Green virtues of their product or services.  It is called Greenwashing.   As the world matures, a company claiming to be a Green business will need more than a good marketing department.  They will want to have an integration of Green practices throughout the operation and certification by an independent firm like the Green Business League.

To be a Green business, the expectation is that Green is more than a layer of veneer or hasty covering to disguise the true nature of the business.  It comes down to Green practices at nearly every level of the company’s various programs or departments.  In fact, it reaches to each and every one of the company’s employees.  A training program like the “Green Awareness” program can be offered to any company by a Certified Green Consultant to make sure that everyone is on the same page of this important issue.

Combine this training with an ongoing program of Greening up the operation of the company with the help of a Certified Green Consultant, and it is reasonable to expect that the environmental issue is far more than a hollow claim by the company trying to impress an increasingly astute public.

One of the most enjoyable topics about the Green Business transition is the discovery that Going Green can save nearly any business a great deal of money.  As a Certified Green Consultant does the evaluation of a business, the initial emphasis is on improving the Green IQ.  Most of the changes involve the adoption of a variety of Green Practices, and frankly a number of the transitions are cost neutral or may require a modest investment spread out in a month-by-month program.

What we want businesses to know is that Green is very much about “Efficiencies.”  Each Certified Green Consultant is trained in something called “Zero Cost Consulting,” which means that one of the overall goals is to save the customer more money than they might spend in the Greening process.  This is not a 10-15 year return on investment, but a one or two year ROI.   The astute consultant can often identify dozens of cost-savings ideas that can be worth hundreds and thousands of dollars in savings year after year.

Let me share a few of these ideas that are novel and worth the effort.  If your company maintains a lawn or landscaping, there is a direct cost to your revenue, and any savings realized simply means that you have a fatter profit margin at the end of the year.  In these trouble economic times, I believe that the investment in a Certified Green Consultant is akin to hiring an efficiency expert years ago.

One environmental issue is the exhaust produced (including carbon dioxide) by lawnmowers.  Lawnmowers have been reported to produce as much pollutants as 4 to 6 vehicles.  Better machines are being made, but they are not subject to the same kind of standards as autos.  Therefore, there is a tremendous idea afoot that asks for those with ample mowed areas to revert a portion of the ground to a flowering field that cuts down mowing cost, reduces emissions, and adds a unique aesthetic feature to any neighborhood.  Your watering costs may go down as well.

The second idea is to gradually overseed or restart your grass with a hardier and healthier low-moisture (xeriscapic) grass.  Instead of the must touted Kentucky bluegrass, the careful blend of fescues or more native grass will produce a healthy and dense yard that frankly can survive most summers using just rainwater that falls naturally.  A mere 5000 square foot yard in Illinois will spend $300 in water costs each year, and most companies have more than 5000 square feet that they must maintain.

The good news is that there are hundreds of Green solutions that will improve the health of any business, contribute to the sustainable issues that we face in the world, and can also cut expenses out of the annual expenses.  The average person simply doesn’t know enough of these solutions or how to integrate them into their operation.  Find a Certified Green Consultant by going to the Green Business Directory.  The Green Business League offers a national recognition of “Certified Green Business” when businesses achieve a standard of Green Practices in their operation.  A business need not own the building.  Any business can participate in this certification process using an easy-to-follow plan and the assistance of a Green Consultant.