Energy & Emissions

This is the first in a series of posts I am writing to speak to Corporate Social Responsibility Directors and other corporate officers about energy.

I feel strongly that Strategic Energy Management should be a part of any CSR program. Doubt it? Consider the emissions impact on the planet and our communities. Consider the ongoing need to send men and women into battle to protect energy supplies. Consider the communities worldwide being devastated by fossil fuel extraction. If this isn't a case for including energy in your CSR program, then your program had better include a means to get everyone off the planet instead.

So that's the negative motivation. That's the scary side. But there are a number of positive reasons to include energy management in your CSR program. Let's take a look at them.

1. Reduced Energy Expense - Case studies have shown that firms implementing a disciplined energy management program reduce their energy expenses 10% to 15% in the first year, and 30% to 40% over succeeding three to five year periods. Imagine handing that gift to management as a product of your CSR program!


2. Reduced Risk - You can reduce your exposure to cost-of-energy risks by conscientiously managing your energy the same way you do by managing accounts receivable and inventory. You will also reduce your exposure to risk from any carbon caps that are set over the coming years.


3. Employee Engagement - Well-implemented energy management programs engage and empower company workers, reducing turnover, reducing absenteeism, and reducing recruitment costs. Not to mention making for happier and more productive employees.


4. Moral Authority - By actively managing your own energy use, you acquire authority to propose it to your supply chain, or even require it. You multiply your impact, and strengthen your supply chain at the same time.


5. Citizenship - Conscientious energy management sends a signal to your customers as well about your values and willingness to work at being a good citizen in your community.

Strategic Energy Management, as you may have guessed by now, is not a hardware system, it is not a software tool. It is exactly what its name implies, a management system. And this is precisely why it belongs in your CSR program. It is a combination of energy records, review and approval procedures, and projects. But most importantly it consists of your organization's people.

So that's what I want to explore in this series - what a Strategic Energy Management System is, how it works, and, most importantly, how to energize your organization around it.

Part Two: Choosing an Energy Leader

Paul Birkeland lives in Seattle, WA, US, and develops Strategic Energy Management Systems for government, commercial, and industrial organizations through Integrated Renewable Energy.