All of this hype about “green” business can easily exhaust even the most dedicated environmentalists. “Green”, “eco-friendly”, and other environmental buzzwords were not in the lexicon of the average citizen until a couple years ago. In light of this fact, it’s no surprise that many businesses are incorporating these words and phrases into their products’ messages. “Green” has changed from an occasionally used word to a must have for many companies. Words are just the tip of the iceberg however. “Green” business practices have infiltrated all aspects of business and those truly dedicated are reaping big rewards.

A study published by Retail Systems Research (RSR), sponsored by Intel and the Retail Industry Leaders Association explains the benefits for those companies who are incorporating environmentally-friendly practices into all aspects of their business. As the report states, “green is rapidly creating a strategic advantage in ALL corners of the enterprise, and has become a major component of the planning for any new IT investment.”

According to the study, cost reduction is still the primary motivator for all of the companies surveyed, but those companies referred to as “Retail Winners” (retailers whose sales are already outperforming their competitors and grew by more than the industry-average 3 percent annually) are equally focused on the brand-building potential of eco-friendly strategies.

Retail winners are contrasted with “laggards,” companies who are generally underperforming. Retail winners:

“recognize that customers expect them to act more so than do their underperforming competitors, are more interested in lowering their carbon footprint, and are much more in tune with creating the image that they ‘care.’ They associate environmentally sound practices with their Brand image to consumers and the industry, and associate these practices with their ethical responsibility to the community in anticipation of stealing market share as the customer’s green demands grow.”

As the study makes clear, “green” can no longer be considered a fad. Let’s look at some of the statistics cited by the study:

• Last year, 53% of overall respondents identified the store energy costs as a challenge that could benefit from a green overhaul.
• This year 92% of all the electricity required to run a retail store’s POS systems, overhead lighting, backroom systems, mobile/handheld devices, signage, security systems ‐ not to mention the energy costs of heating, air conditioning, water, and refrigeration, where needed – has come into focus.
• 48% of surveyed companies consider “green initiatives” currently as strategic initiatives for their enterprise.
• Retail Winners are motivated more by ethical obligation, industry image, and brand identity than the average company surveyed.

So what does all this mean?

It seems that in just a couple of years the tide has turned in favor of “green” business practices. Although the survey was largely of North American companies, it doesn’t take a genius to realize that a new environmental consciousness has taken hold in the international business world. Question after question asked to companies in the RSR study shows that companies genuinely invested in reducing their environmental impact consistently report better earnings and performance.

At the same time Retail Winners are doing better financially by implementing green initiatives, they are also expanding the scope of their green practices in areas of business that were not previously considered for green improvements, such as IT, logistics, supply chains, and packaging.

I think it is fair to say that “green” business practices are finally winning the uphill battle against traditionally wasteful and inefficient practices.

For more information about “green” practices and their advantage for companies, go to Retailsystemsresearch.com.

You can blame it on the economic meltdown, but the real estate industry has never been so actively engaged in changing its conventional perception. Suddenly, ‘going green’ is the mantra for real estate developers who are realizing that the best way to minimize their operating costs is by adopting a smarter, more sustainable approach. Asset managers with experience in making buildings energy efficient are being pooled from all across the globe by American businesses to show them how low occupancy levels can be withstood by decreasing energy expenditures.

Owners of existing buildings that cannot afford large-scale renovations are desperately seeking measures by collaborating with green designers/architects to help manipulate the existing structure into being more sustainable and energy efficient. Among the many approaches available, the simplest and most affordable involves a blend of monitoring and maintenance. This can be done independently by businesses without expensive, externally-hired resources.

Monitoring — It seems only natural that to begin a building’s move towards energy efficiency, it is imperative to evaluate the building’s performance. This can be done in various ways. The most common approach is to use a combination of energy management software that require entering readily available information into various fields in order to create a matrix of the building’s energy performance.

The EPA’s free online Energy Star Portfolio Manager is one such tool. It is comprehensive, incorporating factors such as energy costs, weatherization and building size. It can be used for comparing the building’s performance over a period in order to calculate the progress made in the recent past. The value of investing in retrofits is preached by many green analysts but few understand that it is essential to calculate the savings also made through smaller investments, such as new lighting controls or HVAC fixtures. The EPA’s energy software helps monitor these small changes in daily consumption of electricity, water and gas to quantify your savings.

Maintenance — Merely because you do not have the resources to retrofit a building to meet LEED certification standards, it does not mean that you can’t make minor, but important, changes to increase a building’s overall energy efficiency. Once you have calculated your energy expenditures, small maintenance benchmarks can be implemented over time to disperse the cost of an sustainability overhaul. Nominal maintenance-related expenditures go a long way to conserving energy and moving a building towards sustainability. Even predictable routine maintenance, such as checking the performance of roofing installations, circulating pipes, lighting fixtures and temperature sensors/thermostats, can go a long way to ensuring that energy resources aren’t being wasted.