Are you building sustainability strategies or are you sustainable? – Gamification turns words into action

Are you building sustainability strategies or are you sustainable? – Gamification turns words into action

The lack of workforce participation makes sustainability efforts all talk – Gamification turns words into action

ESG strategies and reports on sustainability efforts are already a part of many companies’ operations. But how to transform a strategy into everyday actions and choices throughout the organisation? Gamification is a proven way to manage change and it works for embedding responsible practices as well. 

Every company has a responsibility to act responsibly

Responsibility and sustainability concern us all, since we all live on the same planet. But businesses have a special role to play in making them a reality. This is partly a moral responsibility, but there are also legislative and market pressures for businesses to take sustainability seriously. 

Responsibility reporting is already mandatory for big corporations, but it is to be expected that the same requirements will be applied to smaller companies in the coming years. Customers – both consumers and businesses – are also increasingly more demanding. 

In addition, many sectors are already competing for employees. This will force employers to treat people in a more equal fashion, or it could result in a complete paralysis of recruitment.

Change requires strategy, planning and getting people involved

Environmental and social responsibility and administrative transparency are big issues. So big that they cannot be developed or reported on without a strategy. 

Sustainability strategies can, however, sound like a bunch of business people waxing poetic about slowing down climate change, halting biodiversity loss and reducing carbon footprints. Or it might end up being an endless list of acronyms (ESG, CSRD, NSRS, DEI, GRI, etc.). In both cases, there is a real risk of the strategy never leading to concrete action.

“Culture eats strategy for breakfast” may be a cliché, but it holds true. A transformation does not happen without changing the culture, and culture will not change without people’s involvement. 

This is illustrated, for example, by a study of transformation projects by consultancy agency McKinsey, which emphasises the importance of communication and clear objectives for the success of a project:

Organizations with successful transformations are more likely than others to use face-to-face communication, making goals tangible for employees.

Insights are gained through participation, not lectures – Gamification makes training participatory

In the ESG transformation, getting employees involved is particularly important because each of us makes choices regarding sustainability every day. Whether it’s about waste management or the treatment of others in the workplace, it’s the choices we make that matter.

How can we communicate the sustainability objectives set out in our corporate strategy effectively and in a way that speaks to our employees? And how do you make those objectives clear and tangible?

More and more companies have put aside their PowerPoint presentations and are now looking for gamified ways to get people involved in the company’s sustainability efforts. And no wonder, as the benefits of gamification have been proven by studies at many top universities – including Harvard Business School.

Seppo is Finland’s leading expert on gamification

Seppo gamification platform, is an award-winning tool that offers a fun and effective way to help people adopt big picture concepts such as sustainability. It’s a perfect fit for anyone looking for ways to make a real difference in their organisation.

Want to learn more about the power of gamification in implementing a sustainability strategy? Visit our ESG website to learn more.

You can also download our latest Gamification in DEI whitepaper and watch Play, Learn, and Grow: Leveraging Gamification for DEI Success webinar recording.