People & Performance

Staff stay for sustainability

Sustainable business practices are giving banks the edge in attracting and retaining people

By Charis Palmer

July 6, 2007

Social responsibility issues are shaping up to be a major point of difference for leading organisations as they seek to recruit and retain staff. “If potential employees don’t see that their values align with the company then they will go elsewhere to look for work,” says Grant Bransgrove, senior associate with sustainability advisory firm Net Balance Management.

Bransgrove says: “There’s now considerably more evidence that Generation Y employees are making value-based decisions about who they’ll work for, with an organisation’s corporate responsibility practices high on their list.” And in a tight labour market with the baby boomer generation reaching retirement age, Bransgrove says companies that are able to differentiate themselves on the basis of superior performance are at a distinct advantage over their competitors in attracting and retaining the best employees.

Despite climate change being high on the list of concerns worrying Australians, research from recruitment agency Talent2 recently revealed that employees don’t believe companies are doing enough to help the environment. In a survey of more than 1500 people, 89.4 per cent said that they would like to see their company doing more to help save the environment. Nearly one in two (49 per cent) said a company’s environmental responsibility is a factor in deciding whether to apply for, or accept, a job. And a resounding 97 per cent said that they believe it is up to private companies of all sizes to look after the environment.

Darren Clarke is head of sustainable development and planning with NAB. He says many of the bank’s 25,000 Australian-based staff were starting to ask questions about the bank’s role in sustainability. Following NAB’s announcement that it would become carbon neutral by 2010, Clarke says the staff response has been overwhelming. “It’s been a resoundingly successful piece for our people to the point that when we actually announced we would become carbon neutral it was the largest issue ever we’ve had internal feedback on. And 99 per cent was exceptionally positive feedback.”

Embracing social and environmental responsibility has also proven to be successful for staff satisfaction and retention at mecu. The mutual institution first decided to commit to socially and environmentally responsible practices in 2002. mecu’s general manager of development, Rowan Dowland, says at the time the institution had high levels of staff turnover and low staff satisfaction. Since the group has managed to better align its employment practices with corporate and staff values, Dowland says it has achieved industry-leading levels of staff satisfaction and retention.

Dowland says that whereas before “people had a sense of disengagement in our business”, today “people that work for mecu embrace sustainability in their personal lives. It’s not something you do when you come to the office; it’s something you do in your life.”

Jennifer Patterson, director of electricity, renewables and emissions with ANZ, is a case in point. Patterson left a high-paying job in the electricity trading industry to take up the role at ANZ, and she says she was happy to take a pay cut in return for the opportunity to drive change.

“It’s not often that you can do something where you really feel like you can make such a big difference.”

Patterson says that while ANZ CEO John McFarlane has demonstrated a strong and genuine commitment to sustainability, the drivers for action have come from all levels of the organisation. And she says ANZ’s six-star rated “green” building will be McFarlane’s legacy. The $512 million project at Melbourne’s Docklands will use 70 per cent less fossil-fuel generated energy and 60 per cent less water. Many of the plans for the building are designed to create a healthier workspace for employees, and include open stairwells and shared spaces to bring staff together, increased fresh air, and workspaces that maximise natural light. The building will also include more than 270 bicycle spaces, more than 100 motorbike/scooter spaces, a fully equipped gym and convenient public transport access.

Similar principles have been applied to Bendigo Bank’s new headquarters, which includes double-glazed windows; automatic light dimming; under-floor air-conditioning, with individual user control; and grey-and-black water recycling.

The completed centre will bring together all Bendigo head-office staff for the first time in 10 years. Owen Davies, Bendigo’s general manager of marketing and corporate affairs, says staff are increasingly demanding a better working environment. “People are going to be looking to come to work in buildings like this. It’s going to become an expectation.”