Adding Green, Environmentally Friendly Practices to Your Projects

Michael R. Wood is a Business Process Improvement & IT Strategist Independent Consultant. He is creator of the business process-improvement methodology called HELIX and founder of The Natural Intelligence Group, a strategy, process improvement and technology consulting company. He is also a CPA, has served as an Adjunct Professor in Pepperdine's Management MBA program, an Associate Professor at California Lutheran University, and on the boards of numerous professional organizations. Mr. Wood is a sought after presenter of HELIX workshops and seminars in both the U.S. and Europe.

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Topics: Organizational Culture, Organizational Project Management

Before launching into this article, it’s important to set forth the following caveat: The primary responsibility of a project manager is to deliver on the project’s objectives.

If a project is intended to deliver on climate change or other “social good” objectives, then the path is easier. When a project is not focused on those objectives, then pursuing them is fine—so long as they do not impact or interfere with the objectives that justified the project in the first place (of course, you can always verify this position with your senior management if you think it’s off base).

So, what types of activities can be woven into projects that are not necessarily green, environment friendly or “social good” focused—without impeding on the project’s original goals? For the sake of this article, the focus will be on weaving green/environmentally friendly protocols, resource management and practices into most projects.

When thinking of deliverables that support a “social good” agenda that can be integrated into a project, it is helpful to understand the reach of those deliverables—how aggressive or broad the effort will be. Clearly, the broader and grander the reach, the more likely the objective will distract the team from achieving the main objectives of the project.

Here is a list of categories to…

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