Fresh Perspectives: Why Millennials Deserve A Spot At The Helm Of Your Business Sustainability

Julie Starr • February 19, 2021



When it comes to change in the workplace, it’s not unusual for employers to turn to their longest standing and most trusted employees. After all, no one understands the inner workings of your company better. Unfortunately, as legitimate as this thinking may be, keeping business change in such a close, and sometimes stagnant circle, can also see you falling behind, especially on the sustainability front.

In many ways this makes sense – why would people want to actively overhaul processes that have served their work environments for years? No one likes change, after all. But, in this day in age, change is inevitable, or at least it should be where your sustainability focus is concerned. 

Luckily, times are changing, with forward-thinking managers putting more and more millennial leaders through development coaching that puts them at the institutional forefront. This is beneficial for bringing modern and fresh outlooks to every corner of business, but where sustainability is concerned, managers are especially noticing the benefits of following a millennial lead, including –

Increased awareness of environmental issues

There’s no way you can build a sustainable future for your business until you understand the issues at play. Unfortunately, while it isn’t always the case, many individuals from older generations are out of touch, or may only have a blanket awareness of what’s going on. By comparison, millennials have grown up in a world where global warming is a buzzword. Most young professionals studied environmental impact in school, as well as being far more likely to have attended notable environmental protests of recent years, such as the largely millennial-led efforts of Extinction Rebellion. This puts them in a unique position to know not only what’s what, but also what your company needs to do about it. 

Passion to fuel improvements

Alongside this increased awareness comes an environmental passion that seems to fuel the values of countless millennials. In fact, this generation cares so much about environmental impact at work that 10% would take a pay cut for a sustainable work environment , while 70% have previously left a job due to a lack of environmental focus. This signifies some pretty strong beliefs, and that level of passion is guaranteed to take your company’s environmental efforts much further than if they were implemented by someone who didn’t much care either way. 

The capability to spread the message

Obviously sustainable business is about more than spreading the message, but making sure that people know what you’re doing both increases your chances of impressing, and also setting a better precedent for other companies in your sphere. And, no one knows how to shout about environmental issues more than millennials. After all, with social media at their fingertips, this is the generation that brought the issue to the forefront in the first place. And, you can bet they can utilize those same social skills to spread the word and see your sustainability focus having more than just environmental impact.

So, what are you waiting for? It’s time to let your millennial workforce guide you for once.

 

By Julie Starr December 17, 2024
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By Julie Starr December 16, 2024
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