The BIG FIVE: Must-Haves for Successful Sustainability

By John Salustri

The expectation for environmental, social and governance (ESG) protocols has gained some teeth. An increasing number of institutional investors and operators are being judged by the rating agencies based on their performance in all areas of sustainability. So today, more than ever, a commitment to ESG has to be more than flowery words on a corporate website. 

With that in mind, Robert Kontur, director of Real Estate Operations for EnerSys in Reading, PA, shares his thoughts on what IAMC corporate peers need in order to create and maintain a sustainability program that produces results. 

First up is to set realistic goals. Setting an expectation and a timeline without details “only hurts the process,” he says. “Clarity on expectations has to come from the top, from the senior stakeholders.”

Once goals are set, “take baby steps,” Kontur states. Working toward ESG goals is a marathon, not a sprint. Kontur says he’s heard of peers being asked to provide  years of utility bills to track their sustainability progress–and to do so in ridiculously short timeframes. “That’s really difficult for a manager in the field to produce.”

This, of course, relates to Number Three on Kontur’s list: Communicate. As those “baby steps” progress, he says, be sure to report results and communicate next steps. This, he says, keeps everyone on the same page and pointed in the same direction. And throughout, he says, remain consistent in the style and timing of your communications. 

Progress means nothing, of course, without benchmarking. “At the end of the day, the stakeholders and Wall Street want to see savings,” he states. Of course, the environmental issues are key, but real estate is also a business and to that extent, it’s also about the bottom line—cost savings or cost avoidance. “You need benchmarks along the way.to take advantage of rebates and the programs available to you.” 

That said, he adds that, “We need to educate, and not alienate, all of the third-party groups we interact with.” While the bottom line is always a goal, it isn’t the only goal, and there are much broader issues at stake here. 

So, social buy-in is a key piece to the sustainability puzzle. “Our culture is changing, and we as a nation are becoming greener. As a result, the restrictions on businesses are becoming more stringent. So, we have to make sure our operations are safe for the local community.” By addressing the social buy-in, he says, we accomplish the dual goals of satisfying the bottom line and while making our next-door neighbor happy.

“This is not just about profit or cost avoidance,” he says. “It’s about our future, the future of our communities and our planet.”