Eco ‘Treasure Hunts’ can target both sustainability and employee empowerment

When it comes to corporate sustainability and operational excellence, the role of employees is increasingly viewed as a fundamental component of a successful transition. With employee engagement suffering at the hands of a weak job market, companies are looking for ways to blend both sustainability and staff empowerment.

To that end, the Environmental Defense Fund has begun working with GE to develop a sort of “eco treasure hunt” program. The idea essentially calls for teams of employees to collaborate and identify opportunities for energy savings and process improvement. Over the course of the two- or three-day “hunt,” teams can target any aspect of the organization, including lighting, HVAC systems, office equipment and manufacturing operations.

“The concept may sound simple, but the potential results are significant,” explains Kara Scharwath for Triple Pundit. “At the Roosevelt Hospital in New York City, $2.1 million in energy savings were identified … GE has conducted over 200 internal treasure hunts across all their business units which have yielded a total of $150 million in cost savings opportunities.”

While Eco Treasure Hunts should not be viewed as the be-all-and-end-all solution to employee engagement and sustainability, it's a good place to start, whether the priority is empowerment or operational excellence.