How to engage employees for ESG goals

The adoption of the UN Sustainable Development Goals in 2015 sparked a new integration of social impact and wellbeing with environmental performance. Previously distinct challenges were seen to be related, and organizations found themselves with interconnected issues, goals and opportunities.

WeSpire, an employee engagement technology company, developed a platform, content and community that companies use to activate the strengths of their workforce to navigate this new landscape. By engaging employees effectively, businesses can leverage their entire organization for ESG performance while increasing employee morale.

EY’s Chris Hagler chats with WeSpire Founder and CEO Susan Hunt Stevens to discuss how organizations can accelerate progress towards their ESG goals, improve company culture and stimulate innovation, all by activating and enabling their workforce.

Key takeaways include:

• Leverage existing communication channels to provide content and gather information and use the power of recognition to get people involved.
• Start by building up the knowledge base of your employees. When you increase the ESG IQ of your employees, you can inspire them to think about how the organization can operate more efficiently, which spurs business innovation, as well as builds workforce morale.
• The key to inclusive cultures is psychological safety. Inclusive cultures are more innovative cultures because people are more comfortable taking risks. A creative and innovative workforce can be a large factor in a company’s ability to hit audacious ESG goals.
• There are many ways to develop content for your employee engagement program. Strategically align the activities with your ESG goals and leverage what others have done to customize programs for your organization.

For your convenience, full text transcript of this podcast is also available. Read the transcript.