Pleased to see the following news from our CEO, Michael Kempner:

MWW Group: CarbonFree for Three Years Running

I am very pleased to report that MWW Group is once again CarbonFree through our partnership with Carbonfund.org, a leader in carbon reduction and offset solutions. For the past three years, MWW Group has offset the total carbon emissions of its operations, roughly 4,600 metric tons of C02 (2009 certificate below) for that three-year period. That’s an amazing amount, particularly for an organization of our size. It represents more than 10 million pounds of C02, the emissions equivalent of 10,000 barrels of oil or taking 850 cars off the road for a year. And while the entire MWW Group team can take pride in this accomplishment, we’re by no means finished.

As an organization we believe that without a well-trained workforce, the promise of clean energy is unattainable. Therefore in 2009 and beyond, MWW Group will extend its partnership with Carbonfund.org and support specific, verifiable renewable energy projects that create the infrastructure and skills necessary to drive a global, clean energy economy and further reduce carbon emissions. This year MWW Group will support the Iowa Lakes Wind Energy and Turbine Program, an initiative of Iowa Lakes Community College responding to the growing demand for skilled technicians who can install, maintain, and service modern wind turbines. Information on the program can be found here x men origins download download dragonball evolution dvd .

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MWW Group remains firmly committed to doing our part to protect and preserve the environment. We challenge our peers in the industry, as well as our clients and partners, to join with us in this important work, or to adopt your own programs to help bring about a clean energy economy.

msacks MWW Group Green, Sustainability

In today’s marketplace, tangible commitments to protecting the environment are rapidly becoming the ‘greens fees’ for doing business. Whether it be introducing environmentally-friendly products and processes, reducing carbon footprints or assuming cradle-to-grave responsibility for the items you sell, environmental considerations have permeated every aspect of business. So too, they increasingly color how audiences evaluate your organization.

Environmental responsibility is a building block of corporate reputation and a key component of much-heralded “Most Admired” and “Best Places to Work” surveys. It impacts everything from consumer brand preference, purchase decisions and employee retention, to partnership opportunities, analyst perceptions and investor confidence. Strong environmental initiatives can be leveraged to establish leadership positioning among peers. They can also build goodwill among constituencies which help mitigate the impact of the inevitable crises.

Publicizing your organization’s strong environmental record and progress towards improvement goals is absolutely critical, as is the ability to market differentiated products and services that address customers’ environmental priorities or that enables consumers to enjoy a “green” lifestyle. The challenge: executing reputation-boosting environmental communications initiatives without crossing into “greenwashing” territory.

The line between credibly reporting environmental achievements and running afoul of environmental watchdogs varies widely from product-to-product and industry-to-industry. There are no secret formulas, no silver bullets. There are, however, several principals that can be applied to help you steer clear of trouble:

Leadership Required: Accepting an organization’s claim that the environment is a high priority is significantly easier when senior executive ownership is clearly evident…and the closer to the C-suite the better. Vesting responsibility for environmental initiatives in your marketing team sends is a clear tip-off that organizational commitment goes only as far as the annual marcom budget will take it. In many cases, senior-level ownership also provides a spokesperson capable of telling the organizations environmental story to media and through thought leadership efforts.

Authenticity Matters: While ‘doing the right thing’ is noble, most audiences understand what being a ‘for-profit’ organization entails. Confidently link environmental responsibility and value creation. Align your environmental initiatives with your core business and communicate how those efforts boost performance, whether by driving sales, minimizing expenses or strengthening relationships.

Embrace the Process, Communicate Your Progress: Being “Green” or environmentally responsible is a continuous improvement process, not a journey to a fixed destination. Identify your path and the key milestones along the way and regularly report on your progress. Transparency in reporting is critical as your audience is savvy and certainly capable of seeing though hollow claims masquerading as fact-based progress reports.

Less is More: It is not necessary to change the world all at once…nor is it possible. Identify the environmental issues your organization is facing and on which real progress can be made. Tackle those and report progress on a regular basis. As momentum is achieved, begin adding additional issues to be addressed. Engagement at all levels of your organization and confidence in the process will be aided by early wins.

Engage Your Ambassadors: If your environmental story falls on deaf ears internally it will be an uphill battle to sell it to the outside world. Promote active employee engagement in environmental initiatives and create pride in the organization’s progress. Engage partners and customers where possible. You will be rewarded with a cadre of supportive storytellers more than happy to spread the message of the organization’s good works.

msacks Sustainability Corporate Reputation, Green, Greenwashing

In late-2007 I participated on a panel at E&Y’s annual clean tech conference.  As it closed we made predictions on the future of “green” as a marketing concept and business driver.  My prediction was that “green” will fade from vogue and be replaced by the broader platform of “sustainability.”

Yes, environmental responsibility is vital, but so too is social and economic responsibility.  A reduced carbon footprint doesn’t absolve corporations that avail themselves of child labor or deceive investors.  And, from a marketing perspective, “green” is limiting whereas “sustainability” delivers scale by binding together good works across the corporation.  As the regulatory environment evolves and standards are established, “green” will lose its effectiveness in the marketplace.

Clearly, I didn’t spark a revolution with my pearls of wisdom.  There wasn’t a mad rush to de-green advertising and marketing campaigns…at least not that I noticed.  Was nobody listening?  Could I have been wrong?  Perhaps if “sustainability” looked better on T-shirts…

This morning I was pleased to see an Environmental Leader editorial by John Rooks, president of THE SOAP Group, called More on the Color of Sustainability.  Rooks and Adam Werbach, Global CEO of Saatchi & Saatchi S, have a running debate on the value of colors to social movements – think the Green Party or the Orange Revolution – and where we go from “green.”  Rooks wrote:

When Adam writes that we need to move beyond Green, he is right. But moving it to Blue is only a temporary fix – a branding and design project, an opportunity to differentiate it for a while; an academic exercise for branding geeks like me.

The beneficial business movement does need to shake free of Green – yes.  Shaking into a new color is one possible strategy. But dropping the concept of color altogether and making sustainability ubiquitous – therefore invisible – might be even cooler.

Movements are hegemonic forces of swelling ground and visceral rally cries and the color assumes the cause (not the other way). And they can all be derailed through propaganda.  So, Ok, I give, I give.  Make it Blue.  I really don’t care what color it is.  But as long as it is painted veneer, it can be counterfeited.  Get ready for a new trend of bluewashing.

Seems to me that companies thinking now about what they’ll do after the “green” revolution…and then taking an active role in shaping the vocabulary of the next revolution – sustainability…will be the winners in the long run.

msacks Sustainability Corporate Brand, Green, Sustainability