Sustainability as a key decision-making criterion

Sustainability has become a key factor in a company’s public image. Customers and shareholders expect genuinely sustainable development. When it comes to recruitment and the ‘war for talent’, prospective employees want to know from their potential employers how sustainably they operate. How sustainable a company is can also be a deciding factor in business acquisition. More and more clients are incorporating relevant evidence into their supplier evaluations. However, it is also clear that without sustainability being embedded in corporate goals and strategy, with support from management, authentic sustainability communication is difficult to achieve.

No greenwashing, please

Advertising and marketing campaigns are flooding us with green promises. Consequently, the suspicion of empty rhetoric hangs over all sustainability communication. The key, therefore, is not greenwashing, but transparency. Employees, customers and other stakeholders want authentic communication about measurable efforts that have a positive impact on the environment and society. Even ‘fuck-ups’ and lessons learnt are welcome, because sustainability is a challenge for everyone. Those who talk about and share their experiences also expand their network and strengthen the movement. Many explicitly want companies to take a stance – even on critical issues.

Showcasing people and their commitment

So the message is: communicate actively, take a stand and let your actions speak for themselves – don’t just pay lip service.

Internal and external communication are equally important and should take place across all platforms: on the intranet, on social media, on the company’s own website, and via traditional PR. The core messages must be individually tailored to the company’s sustainability strategy, robust and consistent.

Showcasing people and their commitment makes the broad topic of sustainability more tangible and vibrant. Tell real stories using images, video, podcasts or reports. Statements and interviews are also effective formats.

Whether it’s CEO communication or employees acting as ambassadors: authentic sustainability communication can only succeed if the transformation within the company is led by management, internal motivators regularly engage with the topic, and sustainable thinking is thus firmly embedded.