– Creating a culture of environment awareness
In today’s world, global warming has become a hot topic of conversation and many IT companies are taking up initiatives towards the cause of the environment and doing their bit, be it in the area of energy conservation, water management, pollution control, etc.
In my view, it is important to have a “green conversation” with all the key stakeholders, which means to make environment awareness a way of life for employees and for the organization. Several studies indicate that one of the reasons for the failure of environment awareness programs and practices is that senior management and the organization downplay the impact of these initiatives on organizational life. Indeed, if such programs and practices are to succeed, it requires a collective effort from all the stakeholders involved, be it employees or the senior management team.
Virtusa has implemented many initiatives towards conservation under the “Code Green” initiative. The Virtusa campus (in Hyderabad) has been constructed with a holistic approach to sustainability, concentrating on areas such as water efficiency and harvesting, energy and atmosphere, materials and resources, and indoor environmental quality.
If you’re wondering what you and/or your organization can do to lessen your footprint on the earth, check out the following Top 5 Ways to Green Your Workplace!
1. Conserve energy: One of easiest ways to achieve this is through LED lighting. At Virtusa, we made the switch from CFL to LED without compromising on optimal lux levels required for working. Also, we realized workstation height plays an important role in utilizing daylight effectively.
2. Conserve water: Saving water is simple and it doesn’t take a lot of time and effort. Turning off taps fully and replacing leaking hoses and worn tap washers makes for a quick and cheap way of saving water. Over 60% of our water demand is met through recycled water from the Sewage Treatment Plant (STP) which is used for gardening purposes, and water closets in rest rooms.
3. Create awareness programs: Creating environmental education and awareness programs not only promote a culture of collective responsibility but also self-awareness on how each employee can contribute to the cause both from the organization and individual perspective. For example: cycle to work program, emission test drives, eco clubs, etc.
4. Go paperless: Reducing the amount of paper used in the typical office can be difficult, but any attempt to reduce, reuse and recycle paper can have an impact. You can help save paper quite simply by printing double-sided and reusing scrap paper for notes.
5. Sustainability as the mantra: The key to sustainability is to be able to measure the programs that are being undertaken at regular intervals and inculcate it as part of organizational culture. At Virtusa, one of our core values is to “Reduce environmental footprint of services delivered to our clients by reducing cycle time, increasing right first time and aggressively measuring and improving quality and reuse at source.”
Praveen Upadhyay,
Manager, Head of Admin and EHS (Environment Health and Safety) for India Operations,
Virtusa
