Employee experience most often evokes well-being, quality of life at work and engagement, and sometimes (but not often enough) performance, while environmental impact brings to mind frugality, carbon footprint and responsibility. These are two subjects that are generally treated in isolation, as if one were a matter of external issues and the other of work, when in fact they are much more interconnected than they appear.
Employee experience can also be enhanced by a well-thought-out environmental approach, and a business’s green policies can be levers for improving the daily lives of employees.
Employees want to stay at home and that’s a good thing
Remote work has become a real topic of debate. On the one hand, there are businesses that are pushing for a return to the office under the pretext of collaboration and productivity, often without tangible data to support this (Remote Working productivity: myth or reality? What companies refuse to admit). On the other hand, there are employees who see the office as an imposed constraint rather than a deliberate choice .
This debate overlooks one essential point: commuting and business travel have a major ecological cost, but also a direct impact on the quality of life of employees. Reducing unnecessary travel means reducing stress, fatigue and the risk of accidents, while also reducing the business’s carbon footprint. It is an obvious double benefit, but one that is still largely untapped. Worse still, it is often not even considered: while on the one hand we are forcing people to return to the office, on the other hand we are highlighting its ecological virtue. For once we have a measure that is ecologically positive and not seen as punitive, it would be a mistake not to take advantage of it.
Some businesses, but too few, are beginning to understand this and to integrate environmental criteria into their mobility policies. Encouraging remote work when it is relevant (Why does an employee want or need to work remotely?), and promoting other forms of mobility are not just ecological choices; on the contrary, they also contribute to a better employee experience by reducing everyday irritants.
Digital sobriety: the hidden lever of employee experience
Let’s also talk about the elephant in the room: digital pollution. While everything that can be digitized has been for 20 years, it is only recently that businesses have been questioning the impact of the tools and materials they use (Digital technology and environment: intangible uses for a real impact). Yet we know that the proliferation of platforms, notifications, videoconferencing and emails has an environmental cost (Sustainable digital: no more hypocrisy) as well as cognitive and organizational costs (Hyperconnectivity in the workplace: digital becomes a burden).
Employees are overwhelmed with information, notifications and solicitations that prevent them from concentrating on their work and being efficient. Streamlining tools, encouraging proper information management and getting rid of unnecessary tools and practices would kill two birds with one stone: reducing the carbon footprint and the mental load on teams (Eliyahu Goldratt’s fictional interview on infobesity and bottlenecks in knowledge work).
A systemic approach is required
Ecology is generally perceived as an additional constraint, an effort to be made in addition to work requirements, and moreover, it is not just a perception. But that is the way things are thought of. It is a strategic error. An intelligent approach to environmental impact can be a good lever for improving the employee experience.
It is not a question of greenwashing, but rather of integrating these issues into operational decisions. Fewer forced trips, better management of the digital ecosystem, more sober offices adapted to real needs (as well as to the number of people who go there)… These choices influence
Bottom line
Too often, businesses’ environmental concerns are seen as running counter to performance imperatives and as a constraint on employees.
However, there are areas where these issues can go hand in hand and where environmental policy can be a factor in satisfaction and performance, and it would be a shame to turn a blind eye to these levers, which are not so complicated to activate.
But strangely, businesses are not doing much about the environmental impact of digital technology and are backpedaling on remote work…not very productive at all.
