REVIEW 

The first step to take to understand performance and target savings right away

1. Schedule Energy Time

Schedule regular energy time within your team and governance meetings to allow colleagues to regularly review energy performance against targets and discuss new ideas and actions. This ensures the team maintains its focus on energy and sustainability targets over time and increases the chances of sustained progress.

Energy time works best when reviewed by the whole team during a monthly meeting.

2. Use Team Dashboards and Scorecards

Dashboards are data and information management systems that visually display and monitor energy performance indicators and success measures so the team can review them. Dashboards can be displayed in digital or paper formats.   Scorecards present the status and progress against planned actions and overall energy performance of a department, process, or organization. They are customized to meet the specific needs of a team or organization.

Use tools such as dashboards, balanced scorecards or RAG reports (Red, Amber and Green) to help make quicker and better decisions, reinforce behaviors and maintain momentum.

3. Involve Colleagues in Energy Audits

Energy audits are a systematic analysis of energy use and energy consumption within a defined energy audit scope. ISO 50002 specifies the process requirements for carrying out an energy audit in relation to energy performance. The same principles apply to other utilities resource use such as water. The standard methodology is applicable to all types of organizations, and all forms of energy and utilities use.

For a more effective audit, actively involve building users in the process, and consider how their actions and behaviors influence energy performance.

4. Identify Significant Resource Users (SRUs)

SRUs are people who have hands-on control of, or who can significantly influence, energy and other resources use within an area. Identifying SRUs and other stakeholders is quite often key to review energy performance and identify opportunities and priorities for energy performance improvement; it is good practice to take into account attitudes and behaviors of SRUs as they impact on overall sustainability performance.

Use stakeholder mapping tools to define the key roles and persons involved in actions for better resource use. A RACI matrix, for example, is a responsibility chart which shows who is Responsible and Accountable for related activities within an organization, and who should be Consulted and Informed of actions being taken.

5. Discuss Consumption Profiles

For energy-consuming systems, where half-hourly consumption data is available, talk to colleagues about what effect they think they can have on the shape of the daily and weekly consumption profiles. These can be considered along with any other relevant variables which significantly influence consumption; typical variable may include weather, service or production levels.

The impact of activities or behaviors, with respect to resources use, can be captured in consumption profile templates and used as a benchmark to compare future performance against.

REDUCE 

Prioritize engagement activities that engage colleagues to reduce consumption of resources.

1. Challenge Time schedules

Most energy consuming systems and equipment in the workplace are set to run automatically to programmable time schedules. When setting time schedules, engineers often have to make assumptions about operational practices and behaviors. As most of us are risk averse, this means that most systems run for much longer than they need to. Work with local operators (who best understand local service requirements), review and challenge the operating hours of all equipment and systems that consume significant utilities use.

Reduce times schedules in partnership with local users. Reducing operating times by 1 hour a day can reduce consumption by 5% or more.

2. Just Do It

‘Just do it’ (JDI) is a proven easy to remember, convincing and motivational mantra to stimulate colleagues to make quick low risk actions.  Why wait to do something if it’s the right thing to do and it can be done now?  This helps to make actions quick and intuitive for everyday champions involved; procrastination is often the main reason for little or no achievement.

A JDI mantra needs to be positioned alongside your other rapid actions processes. Champions need be able to distinguish between ideas and actions they can act on individually and those with greater risk that require team discussions, consensus or management approval.

3. Start a 100-day challenge

A one-hundred-day-challenge is a useful framework to create a sense of urgency to help teams focus on a particular challenge, and break down barriers, to see what they can achieve in a fixed timeframe.   100 days is typically the time it takes to break and remake habits. The results achieved through collaboration are often outstanding.

Set a 100-day plan upfront which brings the team together focused on the task.  Encourage teams to share ideas and remember to celebrate success.

4. Nudge Colleagues

Nudge theory uses positive reinforcement to influence behaviors.  It can help people review their existing behaviors, target obstructive ones to correct them, or create new habits.  People like to make fast, effortless and emotionally charged decisions; nudge interventions are typically indirect, free of choice, respectful, positive and about self-discovery.

Guide colleagues to make the more sustainable decision by making the better option more easily available and attractive to do.

5. Organize Collaborative Workshops or Events

Workshops and events are great opportunities to bring colleagues together to develop awareness, instill desire, enhance capabilities, and create the green sparks needed to kick-start change.

Organize Big Green events to create these connections, raise people’s spirits, improve collaboration, boost motivation and identify and act on quick wins – these are all often key ingredients for successful and long-lasting performance improvement programs.

REUSE 

Once reduction interventions are in place, reinforce actions with interventions that enhance ability.

1. Start a Competition

Competitions are proven to be powerful tools in influencing peoples’ behaviors. In fact, competition drives peoples’ motivation pulling on our human natural desire to compete and to compare performances. Competition helps drive continual improvement through innovation, enhanced quality, better knowledge and motivation.

Organize competitions involving teams from different operating areas to improve performance and strengthen team building.

2. Run Awareness Campaigns

Use awareness campaigns to communicate key issues, solutions and benefits to everyone across the organization to enhance their knowledge and understanding. Regardless of the channels used (champions, guides, toolbox talks, posters, videos, etc.), it is important to frame the messages well. Evidence suggests targeted information passed on by colleagues is likely to be more effective than general information provided through printed material such as posters and stickers.  It is a common mistake to think awareness campaigns alone change behaviors; for them to work, they need to be part of an integrated approach.

Run an awareness campaign to engage and educate colleagues and reinforce hearts and minds on energy and sustainability topics.

3. Toolkits

Tools and toolkits support everyday champions to make it easier to break down barriers and overcome challenges to deliver action at scale.  Rapid action processes help colleagues quickly implement standard operating procedures and, if appropriate, develop their own local solutions.  Smart phone or web apps can use process or social networking to help connect activities; take care when using in-house only systems as they can alienate any external members of the team.

Put in place a toolkit that makes implementing actions easier for colleagues.

4. Challenge for Sustainable Habits

The way significant resource users (SRUs) conduct work has a strong effect on energy consumption and waste production.  The 21/90 rule is one popular method that can help SRUs build new habits: someone commits to a personal or professional change in activity for 21 straight days then, once they've established the habit, continue to do it for another 90 days for it to become a way of life.

Encourage colleagues to form new, more sustainable habits.  Use communications to promote good actions that colleagues and opinion leaders take.

5. Create Checklists

If developed well, checklists are one of the easiest ways to stimulate ideas, enhance knowledge and facilitate quick action for champions. Break down a task into smaller chunks or objectives, assign each person one or more tasks they can focus on, and enjoy the satisfaction of checking off the list the completed actions.

Create your own checklists to share with colleagues as a guide with simple ideas and clear instructions.  Be careful about using checklists without a good understanding of the whole process.

RECYCLE 

Connect colleagues and recycle ideas, actions and feedback to seal change longer-term.

1. Launch Your Program

A high profile launch event led by the CEO or a senior director reinforces the importance of any program. This may involve a short event involving key colleagues, with follow-up communications to catalyze action. Use persuasive techniques or imagery to instill in building users a feeling of responsibility, for example, promoting a “switch it off” campaign.  Be careful about solely relying on press releases, posters and print.

For a launch, consider empowering colleagues to use storytelling as an interesting way to engage and persuade others to get involved, without falling into the trap of greenwash or using jargon.

2. Use Online Forums

Online forums provide the opportunity for people to connect and have conversations as part of a community of practice. They can be extremely useful tools to encourage discussion on specific topics of interest, increasing communication and collaboration amongst forum users. Forums are also easy places to go to when seeking new ideas, assistance and support, encouraging anyone to ask for help if needed.

Engage your colleagues by creating your own local community of practice within the workplace. Supplement this by tapping into existing, external forums as appropriate.

3. Lead by example 

Studies show that role modelling or using social norms are very effective ways to spread change. Use role modelling to create new better practices.  Consider which social norms demonstrate to others good simple behaviors and how colleagues can make a difference.

Be a role model and create social norms for colleagues to aspire to or imitate.

4. Share Case Studies

Sharing case studies both internally, within an organization, or externally through industry networks and clubs, is a great means of discovering new ideas and learning about new ways of doing things to drive continual improvement.

Create your own case studies to record and share lessons and experiences, and demonstrate the results of your activities with colleagues and associates.  Draw on external case studies for new ideas.

5. Ask for User Feedback

User feedback is a very effective method to learn about and target important issues that you may not have been aware of. Asking building users for their opinion is also a great way to engage them, and promote good practices. A mix of techniques (events, workshops, questionnaires, interviews) give you a good authentic picture of how your local organization is doing.

Ask about the working environment and your energy and sustainability initiatives, and peoples' motivations and awareness. This feedback can be used to calibrate physical monitoring of the working environment.

RETHINK

Challenge mindsets, look for new ways of doing business and trial new ideas.

1. Introduce Smarter Design Interventions

Use design interventions and environmental restructuring to alter the physical and consequentially social context to enable step changes in energy & sustainability performance. Examples are relocating equipment for easier local control or redesigning workspaces for a better use of natural sunlight or natural ventilation for greater efficiency. This may include use of electronic feedback systems or devices. Note that electronic feedback systems need to be managed carefully as studies show their effectiveness can often easily diminish over time.

Discuss new workplace designs that enhance your ability to continually improve energy & sustainability performance.

2. Realign for the ‘Win Win’

Use the ‘Win Win’ philosophy to target business and personal co-benefits at the same time to make what you’re doing more positive for all the people involved.  Psychologists tell us that it’s often the co-benefits that are typically the drivers of success.  Therefore we need to find out what motivates people on a personal level; to do this, we can draw the classic motivational theories of Maslow, McGregor or Hertzberg.

Discover our Net Zero ‘Win for All’ philosophy, to help you make sure all stakeholders are engaged and championing better sustainability performance for All.

3. Start Innovation Trials

Innovation trials are frameworks that provide a safe context for people to experiment and try out new ways of doing things, in a managed way, without fear of failure. This technique normally involves collaboration, monitoring, measurement and analysis techniques to demonstrate results.

Use innovation trials to test new ideas, habits or technologies for best practice, and instill confidence in participants and outside skeptics. Use successful trials as a basis for business cases for rolling out the approach.

4. Bust Myths

Break any misconception or stereotype about energy saving technology or practices. For instance, it has been a common misconception to believe that switching lights on and off consumes more electricity than leaving them on for short periods. In reality, even fluorescent tubes have historically consumed over 500 times more energy if left on for 15 minutes than the energy required to restart them.

Be careful about direct myth busting of complex issues as it can sometimes be problematic.  Consider working with an opinion leader to trial various scenarios to help bust associated myths.

5. Report how low you can go

After reviewing the potential of opportunities across the 5-R challenges (Review, Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, Rethink), look to report on how low you think consumption could eventually go (over time). 

Use these reports in engagement communications to help stretch mindsets and heart-sets to stimulate creativity, imagination and connections for a step change in better energy & sustainability performance.

Summary

Use this checklist to help you create a buzz and engage your colleagues to get more involved with energy & sustainability action on the ground.

You will know what works best for your organization.

This checklist provides 25 engagement techniques that can be adopted at different stages of a program, aimed at sparking initial interest, showing business and personal benefits, keeping momentum going and instilling a sense of excitement about the future.

But wait… there’s more! Check out the second of our two checklists for more advanced behavior change engagement techniques to get further insights and ideas.

Download

If you would like a downloadable summary checklist of this, please contact us. 

• It’s in Microsoft Word, but it can easily be converted to another Word processing format, such as Google Docs. It’s read-only, so you’ll have to save your version onto your own drive to be able to modify it.
• You can then modify and develop this simplified checklist to suit your needs as required. Complete it on line or print it out (but remember: think before you print!)

REVIEW

The first step to take to understand performance and target savings right away

1. Set a Destination Vision 

In strategic terms, a program vision should project a compelling mental image of what a better, more sustainable Net Zero future would look like for the organization and the people involved. The challenge is to inspire colleagues to review how they impact on energy & sustainability performance and know that their efforts are part of a common, greater goal.

Use your vision to capture imaginations, show clear business benefits, underline that it is easy, and create the emotive connections for colleagues to get more involved: create hope and a sense of excitement about tomorrow.

2. Share & Sanity Check your Plan

Being clear on the plan from the start not only helps avoid confusion but also allows you to consult for feedback early on.  If people understand and input into the plan, they will be more likely to commit.   It they don’t, you’ll quickly erode their interest.

Visually present your strategic plan, ideally on a single page, showing how all the critical activities needed fit together with a clear line of sight to the strategic objectives and your destination vision.

3. Review your Key Performance Indicators

KPIs are used to show whether critical activities are working successfully; the metrics used serve to monitor and measure the effectiveness of these actions. Involving your colleagues in developing your monitoring measurement and verification plans helps ensure buy-in for baselines and monitoring requirements as well as the success measures themselves - means that KPIs and performance measures are more likely to be owned by the people involved.

Encourage your colleagues and teams to monitor energy performance using common and shared KPIs; so they track actual versus expected resource use (in absolute consumption terms) and review their performance in terms of energy efficiency, utilization or  productivity performance (in specific consumption terms).

4. Organize Treasure Hunts 

Treasure hunts can be a fun way to engage colleagues in identifying low-cost energy savings opportunities, from behavioral, operational and technical interventions and actions. Typically, teams walk around a targeted facility looking for quick ways to reduce consumption waste; lots of small opportunities can all add up to large savings.

Use the idea of hunts to engage significant resource users on a practical specific awareness level, allowing them to put on an “energy improvement hat” and look at areas they know well.  Consider carrying out hunts at night as these particularly may reveal golden opportunities otherwise hidden during the day.

5. Run a Personal Pledge Challenge  

Studies suggest that personal plans are more effective at changing our behaviors if they include pledges, particularly if those pledges are in a written format.  Pledges can include changes to personal everyday actions such as changing habits or improving a particular process and more general commitments such aso reducing carbon footprint or increasing recycling rates. Asking colleagues to make personal pledges empowers and drives them to think about what they care about the most, and what they want to work towards.

Consider using personal pledging as part of a campaign to help stimulate awareness and create dialogue around sustainability issues and Net Zero targets.  Smart phone apps can help monitor progress and overall impact.

REDUCE 

Prioritize engagement activities that engage colleagues to reduce consumption of resources.

1. Challenge Everyday Champions 

Everyday champions are colleagues, regardless of their field or profession, who think about and act for better energy & sustainability performance within their work area; quite often, local everyday champions can make a significant impact by committing to just 20 minutes a day.

To be effective, champions must be mutually supported and supportive and their efforts coordinated by organizational managers and practitioners.

2. Empower Local Improvement Teams 

Local Improvement Teams are groups of everyday champions, led by an energy and sustainability representative or lead champion which coordinates and applies structured methodologies to improve processes towards achieving a common task or goal. Once the team is in place, ensure the approach empowers the representative to look after the needs of the individuals.

Set-up local energy & sustainability management team/s and help co-create team charter/s which define purpose, scope, objectives, timeframe and strategic plans.

3. Set Up a Small Projects Fund 

For small projects, the availability of a projects fund can really encourage and support colleagues to champion ideas even when they come at a cost.  Such a fund demonstrates good support for the program from top-management.

Set up a fund that on-site teams can easily access to implement small improvement projects, upgrade equipment, etc.  Remember, targeted in the right way, investments lead to greater savings and returns.

4. Specify Procurement Eco-Labels

Labelling has proven to strongly influence people’s choice in their purchasing decisions. Energy labels, for example Energy Star, can make it easier to identify more energy efficient equipment options. The Green Guide Rating is an example of a scheme which reports on more general environmental impact.  For making decisions, ensure that colleagues consider the relevant eco-labels into context by taking into account the best overall value across all the key procurement objectives.  Record the reasoning for the procurement decision to ensure the intent and sustainability credentials are understood after first purchase.

Review and specify the use of relevant eco-labels for when colleagues buy new or replace equipment and materials. 

5. Set Up Operational Controls 

Operational controls, for example through the use of standard operating procedures, aim to ensure target behaviors are achieved by reducing the opportunity for other choices or behaviors. It is usually better to specify actions to do things in the right way, rather than focusing on what not to do.

Look to set-up, review and continually improve the procedures and specifications you use, for example for your shutdown or fire-up time schedules, performance criteria set for comfort conditions, lighting and heating levels, and the standards you have for design and procurement decisions.

REUSE

Once reduction interventions are in place, reinforce actions with interventions that enhance ability.

1. Sponsor Colleague Training 

Never forget the importance of improving skills, changing mind-sets and creating better behaviors. Training (for new skills) is different from education (for new knowledge), although workshops and programs often use both. Industry-accredited training is desirable for significant resource users to demonstrate their better skills and performance. Coaching helps colleagues to focus their efforts on current objectives by understanding the challenges and developing their own solutions.

Keep your colleagues updated through regular workshops, blended with in-person and online training and coaching as appropriate.

2. Utilize Gamification Methods 

Gamification is a type of training that can help focus people on particular skills through iterative experience and instant feedback. Gamification often draws on competition, recognition and reward opportunities.

Reward energy saving ideas or behavioral change pledges, and give people and teams credit for their efforts and results. Try to make better sustainability a game that everyone wants to play.

3. Sponsor Key-Connectors

Key-connectors are a type of sustainability representative or champion empowered to influence and create local connections between people and activities, helping to overcome barriers and challenges. People who are natural good communicators, and who know a good cross-section of people across an organization usually make good key connectors. Good examples include people who work in facilities management or as office receptionists.

Ask senior connectors to act as ambassadors to help influence top managers (to sponsor work areas etc.). Sponsor key connectors to act as lead champions or representatives for their local areas.

4. Make Incentives 

Incentives may include using prize draws, financial rewards such as bonuses and/or social rewards such as recognition.  This is different from coercion, which uses penalties or adds cost. Studies suggest that social rewards are usually more effective than financial rewards. However, use incentives with caution, as studies also find that individuals could perceive a task as too difficult if the reward is particularly high, or that an excessive focus on rewards can weaken a genuine interest in the task. Don’t rely too heavily on financial rewards as there’s a risk of reversing impact as soon as incentives cease.

Consider incentivizing people to develop themselves and improving performance by linking challenge with reward.

5.Design in Social Enablers 

As well as empowerment, social enablers may include use of smart phone or web apps or other ways to increase means and reduce barriers to increase people’s capability or opportunity for action.  Studies have shown that such enablers, used along with other interventions, can be the defining factor for successful behavior change programs.

Design in a social enabler strategy that promotes enhanced local responsibility, collaboration and empowerment.  Provide support as required.

RECYCLE

Connect colleagues and recycle ideas, actions and feedback to seal change longer-term.

1. Highlight Top Management Commitment in Tracking Progress

It is essential that top managers support energy & sustainability management programs and demonstrate their commitment. Standards, such as ISO 50001, underline the role of top management in successful outcomes; without this commitment, programs usually fail. Ultimately, continual improvement is demonstrated by measurement and verification of progress at high level. Tracking actions bottom-up provides early warning signals. If progress isn’t been made, the approach and support processes need reviewing.

Highlight commitment from top managers in monitoring progress, the necessary resources made available, and their more general support, feedback and recognition.

2. Update Organizational Policies & Procedures  

ISO 50001 and ISO 140001 defines that organizational energy & environmental policies should provide the framework for setting and reviewing objectives and energy targets.  Continually review and include a commitment to ensure the availability of information and necessary required resources, and to satisfy applicable legal and other requirements. Continually improve overall performance and the associated environmental management system, and support procurement and design practices that improve on environmental performance.

Incorporate changes in practices and requirements into organizational policies, job descriptions, training, appraisals and other procedures for colleagues.

3. Employ Suggestion Schemes

Suggestion schemes are mechanisms that allow colleagues to offer their own ideas for performance improvements. Creating such a mechanism, for example, is a key requirement for ISO 50001 good practice.  This could be managed as an ongoing initiative, or specifically promoted at defined times. It is important to respond to any idea submitted within a credible period to avoid colleagues becoming disillusioned in the suggestion scheme management system.

Pixar, for example, set-up a day where employees could make suggestions about opportunities they felt passionate about to save energy. Of more than 100 ideas discussed that day, the Studio prioritized and focused on 21 of them to operate more efficiency.

4. Develop an Energy Crediting System 

Energy crediting is a bottom-up process used to allocate savings to people and teams, rather than just buildings or areas.  This can have a great impact on behavior, making sustainability and energy saving desirable, engaging, and easily accessible to everyone.

Develop a system which lists of improvement ideas and associated benefits and tracks progress being made.  This allows colleagues to see what actions are being taken and can also be used as the basis for a recognition and reward.

5. Earn Certifications

Earn recognition for your organization's hard work by taking advantage of one or more of the numerous programs and initiatives that will validate and legitimize your company’s efforts. Certificates also instill a sense of pride within the company and establish your industry leadership outside your organization.

Let everybody know about your commitment to greater energy and sustainability performance, and your successful people-centered approaches.

RETHINK

Challenge mindsets, look for new ways of doing business and trial new ideas.

1. What’s Next?

Use annual management reviews to look at ways to adapt your approaches and streamline activities and refine strategic checkpoints to guarantee and self-propel momentum.

Keep asking the question ‘what’s next?’ to guarantee momentum in what you’re doing.

2. Surveillance Controls

Surveillance controls are used to monitor changes in stakeholders’ requirements, such as legal requirements, internal factors and external threats.  They ensure goals are still realistic and achievable, now and in the future.

Put in place strategic surveillance to monitor for factors and events which are likely to influence improvements in energy & sustainability performance. Update plans and strategy maps as required.

3. Energy Performance Partnerships

If positioned in the right way, partnerships can help engage, empower and incentivize the teams involved. You can use initiatives such as energy performance contracts or energy crediting to help support this.  

Structure your energy performance improvement projects to be delivered more in partnership with teams, service partners or other organizational stakeholders or groups.

4. Expand the Resource Management Team 

Putting in place an energy & sustainability management team is a fundamental requirement for standards such as ISO 50001. A team is made up of at least one person with responsibility and authority over the effective implementation of an energy management system to deliver energy performance improvement.

Look to expand the resources management team to include a better mix of people with different skills and perspectives, including energy and sustainability managers, energy champions from across the organization, and senior management ambassadors.

5. Renew Objectives, Targets and action plans

Objectives should target and involve significant utility resource uses, and take into account strategic energy requirements and policies. Action plans define how objectives and targets will be achieved, including resources required, responsibilities, and how the results will be evaluated. Set them up so they can be communicated and updated, as appropriate.

To guarantee momentum for continually improving energy & sustainability performance, be prepared to regularly review and reset your objectives, targets and action plans so they are, and continue to be, specific, measureable, achievable, realistic and timely.

Summary

Use this checklist to help you develop your confidence in your approaches and processes to engage your colleagues to get more involved with energy & sustainability action on the ground.

This checklist provides 25 more engagement techniques that can be adopted at different stages of a program, aimed at sparking initial interest, showing business and personal benefits, keeping momentum going and instilling a sense of excitement about the future.

Focus on the few big strategic actions that will make the biggest difference in helping your organization deliver the ‘Win for All'.

If you haven’t already – check out the first part of this checklist, to help you create the buzz at Smart Saver level.

Try out the ideas that most suit your organization’s needs and let us know what worked for you!

Download

If you would like a downloadable summary checklist of this, please contact us.

• It’s in Microsoft Word, but it can easily be converted to another Word processing format, such as Google Docs. It’s read-only, so you’ll have to save your version onto your own drive to be able to modify it.
• You can then modify and develop this simplified checklist to suit your needs as required. Complete it on line or print it out (but remember: think before you print!)

Introduction

More organizations are appreciating that behavior change can be one of the quickest and cheapest ways of delivering energy savings and environmental performance improvement at scale.

However, many organisations still struggle with their change programs and become disillusioned as energy savings don’t result or because they quickly fall away over time. Creating lasting change is usually not a simple process. There is no silver bullet that works for everyone. All organizations are different. They may have to use several different techniques to make it work.

As there are hundreds of different change models and techniques, this CPD article concentrates on drawing out some common principles using the ISO 50001 continual improvement framework of Plan, Do, Check, Act.

Learning objectives include:

• explain why behavior change is important;
• identify common behaviors, concerns and probable consequences;
• plan for the catalyst for change; and
• consider techniques to deliver energy performance improvements.

Growing pressure 

Pressure to improve energy performance is growing all the time. UK energy prices are double what they were a decade ago. The Carbon Trust estimates that most organizations can save 10 per cent off their energy bills through no or relatively low cost measures. These rely on changes in people’s habits and behaviors to be successful.

The European Environment Agency has also presented evidence of the potential, suggesting 5-20 per cent savings are possible by engaging and involving people for better energy performance.

The Carbon Disclosure Project reports that behavior change is one of the most cost-effective carbon measures undertaken by top energy intensive companies in terms of internal rate of return (>72 per cent) and return on investment (124 kgCO2/$ spent).

As the UK spends over £23bn a year on energy, this represents significant potential for UK plc to reduce our environmental impact, enhance our overall competiveness and safeguard employment.

Off the back of the new global commitment to limit climate change (Paris, December 2015), we have a lot to do in a short time. People solutions are able to deliver significant energy reductions at scale and are usually quick to implement as generally they don’t rely on capital investment.

Not only are these measures often quick and low cost, but they also help to right-size, reduce the cost and enhance the ROI of subsequent investments in energy demand and supply technologies.

Behavior change is a critical part of an integrated approach and, in line with the energy hierarchy, would normally be prioritized first.

Avoidable energy waste 

Most energy managers realize there is often significant, avoidable energy waste inherent in nearly all facilities and operations; this seems inevitable at the moment.

More often than not, there is the technical potential to achieve good levels of efficiency but it is the behavioral factors that have been the limiting factor, from decision making to the actions of everyone who work throughout an organization. There are many cases where technology is simply not delivering anticipated energy savings in practice.

Reasons are often down to the behaviors, perceptions and psychology of the people involved. One helpful way to think about behavioral risks is the 7 Dragons of Inaction, set out by the psychologist, Robert Gifford. According to Gifford, these include the following:

Hierarchy of Needs 

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, for example, can be useful to target co-benefits that help inspire people to get involved. Rigid interpretation of his model suggests that once a need is satisfied the person moves onto the next level. However, it is also true that most people’s desires, at any time, can include elements of all the motivational drivers:

1. biological: health and fitness benefits, a more comfortable working environment;
2. safety: improved skill sets and performance, work security;
3. belongingness: being part of a community of practice, enhanced morale;
4. esteem: competition, achievement, recognition; and
5. self-actualization drivers: challenge, new experiences, etc.

A strategy that taps into co-benefits, as well as promoting saving energy, carbon or cost, is often a good recipe for success as it creates a good Win/Win for the people involved.

Successful organizational change relies on individuals discovering change for themselves one person at a time. ISO 50001 follows this premise:

• it requires everyone to be aware of the importance and benefits of improved energy performance and how their activities impact on energy use;
• for those who impact on significant energy use, significant energy users (SEUs) need to be competent in their knowledge and ability and received training as necessary; and
• organizations must provide a process whereby anyone can make comments or suggest improvements.

This applies to anyone working for or on behalf of the organization. 50001 promotes their involvement using activities such as empowerment, recognition, training and rewards and participation.

Delivering action and change through a network of everyday champions is a tried and tested approach. Everyday champions would normally include SEUs, ambassadors (who aim to influence top management) and key connectors (who look to influence everyone else).

Energy management team 

An energy management team is also a requirement of 50001. A strong team often includes a good mix of expertise, credibility, local staff and senior managers.

Everything communicates during change; even doing nothing tells colleagues what you expect them to do! It is important to communicate well to gain and build trust. Everyday champions have a key role in communicating the vision and leading by example.

We know awareness type campaigns, by themselves, often have low impact. They need to be part of an integrated approach.

One useful model to help understand change at an individual level is Prosci’s ADKAR model of five building blocks: its starts with Awareness; then comes the decision to get involved, Desire; after desire comes Knowledge and Ability to make change; and for change to be sustainable, Reinforcement is needed.

We need to communicate to achieve each of these to establish successful change.

The challenge is usually keeping communications simple, using every day and consistent language and positioning across all the channels (digital, video, print, live events, etc.) and be mindful of technical language when it is necessary to use it.

Developing a common language is often required. For example, relating stories out of actions being taken and related successes, is often a more interesting way of communicating without falling into the traps of greenwash or too much jargon.

To kick start a change program, it is good practice to focus in on a few objectives and inject some urgency into the process.

Pareto’s 80/20 principle states that 80 per cent of the results will come from 20 per cent of the effort. We target quick and easy results to generate some green sparks, for example using tactical initiatives such as Green events, Energy treasure hunts, gamification and 100- day energy savings challenges with focused support, training and toolkits.

Just do it, ‘JDI’, is also a mantra used by techniques such as Kaizen, Lean or Six Sigma to help create the momentum needed.

Typically, for energy intensive organizations, 5-10 per cent of the workforce can be SEUs. A person is an SEU if either they have hands on control of significant energy use or have decision-making capability to impact significant energy use. This includes procurement and design colleagues as well as operational staff.

Nudge, prod or persuasion 

Target behaviors are often about delivering customer service as efficiently as possible and taking pride in doing a good job. Nudge, prod or persuasion techniques are generally more effective than command and control approaches but success will depend on the circumstances.

Change is an incremental process; it takes time to change habits and we need to continually refine the approach as we go. To do this, monitoring and feedback from SEUs tells us about energy performance, motivations and actions. Using a mix of techniques (questionnaires, workshops, etc.) often gives a good authentic picture of how we’re doing.

Nudge theory 

Nudge theory, for example, can be used to help review existing influences and target unhelpful ones. This is about analyzing choices available and making the better ones more attractive to do. Nudge interventions are typically indirect, free choice, respectful, positive and about self-discovery. ISO 50001 ‘checking’ specifies:

• periodic review of variables, energy performance indicators (EnPIs) and assessment of the effectiveness of action plans, activities and models;
• ensuring measurement techniques are credible and accurate; and
• investigation and response to any significant deviations in energy performance.

Ultimately, continual improvement is demonstrated by measurement and verification at high level. If progress hasn’t been made, then the approach needs rethinking.

To understand the impacts and benefits of changes in behavior, this also usually needs to be done bottom-up against established energy baselines as well, for example by comparing service provision (e.g. heating, lighting) against use (e.g. occupancy). This is now becoming more practical as local wireless sensors become more cost effective.

Delivering energy savings is hard work. Even if there is high motivation, we know ‘hard things’ are often not prioritized. By making actions easier to do, there is more chance ‘doing the right thing’ becomes a habit and business as usual.

If people have access to progress reports and EnPIs that relate to them, e.g. through dashboards, trackers or apps, this helps them make quicker and better decisions, reinforces behaviors and maintains momentum. Checking looks to review the effectiveness of indicators and support processes to ensure they’re helping to oil the whole process for the people involved.

It helps if activity is also integrated with other business requirements and systems. Approaches such as Six Sigma and Sociotechnical systems can help review how joined up it is with, for example, quality, technology, processes and other goals.

Further Reading: 

• Energy management systems – Requirements with guidance for use, BS EN ISO 50001:2011 
• Achieving energy efficiency through behavior change, what does it take? European Energy Association, EEA Technical Report 5/2013
• Creating an awareness campaign, Carbon Trust Guide 56, updated 2013
• Leading change, John Kotter, Harvard Business Review, first published 1996

Follow Prosci’s ADKAR model to understand how to deliver effective behavior change techniques to improve your energy performance.

Introduction

People-focused solutions (behaviour change) are often one of the quickest and most cost-effective ways of delivering energy savings and energy performance improvement at scale for any organization.

According to the energy hierarchy, energy conservation should be prioritized before investments in clean technology and renewable energy sources, and behavior change and people measures are a key first part of this efficiency first principle, being low cost interventions.

This approach not only helps to assure the legacy benefits of previous energy investment programs but also the resulting energy savings helps to right size any subsequent investments in technology end energy supply solutions.

We need to look beyond technology, facilities, systems, processes, equipment etc., in terms of better energy performance. People are the ultimate consumers of energy; people will ultimately deliver the better buildings and sustainability improvements aligned to business needs. The secret is often being able to balance and integrate our technical and people solutions, with good strategic management controls alongside.

Our Series 12, Module 2 CPD article on behavior change (June 2016) covered the opportunities, challenges and other considerations to strategically plan and control for the catalyst for change.

This CPD module builds on this and focuses more on the tactical and practical tools and techniques that enable people solutions to deliver change at scale.

Learning objectives include:

• identify who we need to target to raise awareness;
• explain why people buy into the process on a personal level;
• consider what tools and techniques can help make it quicker and easier to do;
• plan how to develop the opportunity for local responsibility/ ownership and continual improvement.

There is no silver bullet that works for everyone. This article refers to a range of example tools and techniques (highlighted in ‘bold’) typically used by organizations in behavioral change programs, categorised by function.

All organizations are different so success will rely on the right combination of techniques so it works for the organization concerned.

For behavior change to be successful and enduring, critical mass theory suggests we need to typically involve at least 2 to 5 per cent of the population. For an organization with say 4,000 employees, this means we would reach a tipping point if we energized 80+ colleagues to think about better energy performance every day. For the UK, with approximately 33m employees, this means more than 1m people overall need to be involved.

John Adair, best-known for his action-centered leadership model, says:

“Organization comes into being because there is a task to be done that is too big for one person”.

According to his model, as well as defining the task (with purpose and milestones), there are two other fundamental objectives:

1. to create the group; and
2. to meet the needs of the individuals.

Creating and bringing together an energy management team is a fundamental part of any energy management strategy. This needs to be managed around the three main pillars of delivering action: motivation, opportunity and capability. This often involves significant energy users (SEUs): those who either have hands-on control of significant energy use or have decision-making capability to impact on significant energy use. This may include top management, procurement and design colleagues as well as estates and operational staff, HSE managers and anyone else under the control of the organization, such as consultants, contractors and service partners.

Awareness

It is essential that top management understands the opportunity and what is required in terms of financial and other resources so they can demonstrate their commitment and define energy policies.

Energy audits are a traditional tool that highlight energy improvement opportunities and lay the foundations for developing business cases.

Recommendations are better if the process involves your people. Opinion leaders, for example, can be included in surveys, night walks or innovation trials that highlight the energy inefficiency that is inevitably there; they then become ambassadors for change influencing colleagues.

Energy treasure-hunts, for example, are a way of engaging SEUrs on a more general level, allowing them to put an energy improvement hat on and look at areas they know well. Key-connectors (energy champions) often can have a role to play in making connections between people and activities, helping to identify the best opportunities and critical challenges.

This is also often a good opportunity to talk to and listen to colleagues about their working environment and people’s motivations and awareness. Using a mix of techniques (events, workshops, questionnaires, interviews, etc) often gives a good authentic picture of how we are doing. John Adair also said

“Communication is the sister to leadership”.

Communications can help increase people’s knowledge or understanding through education. Evidence suggests targeted information passed on by peers is likely to be more effective than general information provided through printed material such as posters and stickers.

Peers may use storytelling as a more interesting way of communicating without falling into the trap of greenwash or too much jargon.

Everyone within the organization’s control ultimately needs to become aware of the importance and benefits of improved energy performance and how their activities impact on energy use.

It is a common error to think awareness campaigns change behavior. Awareness increases knowledge but, to be effective, it needs to be part of an integrated approach.

Desire

 A classic war time quote, originally attributed to Eisenhower, says

“Leadership is the art of getting someone else to do something you want done because they want to do it for themselves”.

To deliver this 'Win Win', we need to understand that people love emotive connections: What is going to spark change? What is going to make it desirable? This is not necessarily going to be energy saving or environmental improvement in itself! Psychologists tell us that it is often the co-benefits that are the drivers for success so we need to find out what motivates people on a personal level.

We need a compelling vision, or big idea, to get people excited. To develop this, we can draw on some of the classic motivational theories of Maslow, McGregor, Hertzberg, etc.

Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, for example, suggests that people are motivated by biological needs (health, working environment, etc.), safety needs (improved skills sets, work security, etc.), belongingness (part of a team, enhanced morale, etc.) and then esteem (achievement, recognition, etc.); once these are satisfied, we focus on selfactualization drivers that are related to new experiences and fulfilment.

Incentivization is about linking challenge with reward. This may include prize draws, financial rewards and/or social rewards drawing on competition, recognition and/or achievement. This is different to coercion which uses penalties.

Studies suggest that social rewards (e.g. based on league tables) are often more effective than financial rewards but this would depend on the circumstance. The key message is not to rely too heavily on incentivization as there is a risk of reversal if the incentive is taken away.

Energy performance partnerships, structured in the right way, can help engage, empower and incentivize the teams involved, either through in-house initiatives such as energy crediting (bottom-up tracking of savings linked to people and teams) or structured as part of a wider remit of shared benefits under an energy performance contract.

In practice, our compelling vision needs to include a range of motivators as people and teams often have multi-desires at the same time.

Knowledge

To be successful, we need to have the understanding, knowledge and competence that makes the process quick, easy and intuitive for those involved.

Training is about teaching skills, mind-sets and behaviors. Note this is different to education, although both are often used in workshops. Industry accredited training is useful (and often desirable) for developing the necessary competence and confidence for SEUrs and others to become everyday champions for better energy performance.

Pareto, the engineer economist, famously surmised that ‘80 per cent of the results come from 20 per cent of the effort’. We should look to target the best opportunities to facilitate easier action.

Coaching can be used to help people focus their efforts by understanding the challenges and developing their own solutions. Gamification is another type of training that can help focus on particular skills through iterative experience; instant feedback also draws on competition, recognition and reward opportunities.

Big green events are also used to bring together teams to develop awareness, desire and capability to create the green sparks to kick start change. Motivation here is often about collaboration, making connections and celebrating success.

Heating, ventilating and AC systems are typically the largest energy consumer in most buildings and these systems often run for longer than needed. Using workshop events involving local colleagues, a hospital reviewed the operating times of their HVAC systems. For areas continuously used 24/7, they found they could switch off some of their systems for two or three hours a day without affecting comfort; other systems could be switched off completely. These quick wins meant the hospital quickly saved £83,000 a year in reduced energy consumption (for little investment) and set up the foundations for making more improvements in the future.

Ability

After knowledge comes ability to make change. Enablers here are about increasing means and reducing barriers to increase capability or opportunity. Techniques include empowerment, local controls (of equipment), dashboards (to facilitate local control), balanced score cards (to manage priorities) and hands on support, available as required.

Studies have shown that enablement, building on other interventions, is often a defining factor of the more successful behavior change programs, particularly when it promotes enhanced local responsibility, ownership and control.

Energy time incorporated into regular team meetings allows teams to continually develop their own priorities, standard operating procedures (SOPs), etc., to facilitate their ability for action. Suggestion schemes also allow colleagues to offer their own ideas for energy performance improvement.

The mantra ‘Just do it’ (JDI) is one way of breaking through barriers. This needs to be a managed process: for best results, you need to find the right balance between the ‘quick wins’ and the more ‘desirable but harder’ actions; the latter would rely on more sophisticated tools such as a quick action toolkits. These quicken the processes to facilitate the team’s ability to respond to opportunities within a credible timeframe.

Building habits enhances ability. The 21/90 rule is one popular method to build new habits: commit to a personal or professional goal for 21 straight days then, once you’ve established the habit, continue to do it for another 90 days for it to (typically) become a way of life.

Role modelling, or social norms, provide examples for people to aspire to or imitate. This can draw on energy leadership models, case studies, recognition and reward, opinion leaders, etc., to enhance incentivization (and competition) and create new habits. Role modelling, in this way, is shown to be an effective technique by studies.

Design interventions (also known as environmental restructuring) aim to alter the physical or social context to facilitate ability. This may involve, for example, relocating equipment for easier local control, use of electronic feedback devices, apps, etc.

A restaurant re-fit design, for example, included smaller, more efficient modular equipment in the kitchen, i.e. multiple toasters, fryers, dishwashers, etc. This enabled the team to switch it all on and off more easily using fire-up schedules; for example, more toasters are now switch off earlier and fryers are held off until lunchtime. In operation, the resulting restaurant is now consuming half the energy compared to the equivalent previous design solution (set as the energy baseline).

Smart phone or web apps can offer support for everyday champions to deliver action at scale. They tap into social networking to connect people; though take care when using in-house only systems as they can alienate the external members of the team. Electronic feedback systems need to be carefully managed as studies show their effectiveness can often diminish over time.

Automation technologies and controls also have great potential for energy saving. Traditionally they are considered to be ‘tech only’ solutions. However, in practice, these rely on a social and behavioral context as well. Negotiation with and acceptance of new technologies by colleagues should be a fundamental part of any (continuous) commissioning process; if done well, this can often create enhanced energy savings for the organization longer-term.

Reinforcement

Albert Einstein reportedly used a wonderful simile:

“Life is like riding a bicycle; to keep your balance you must keep moving”.

This is the philosophy the quality pioneer Walter Shewhart used as the mind-set for continuous improvement; encouraging a constant state of driving process improvements to be a way of life.

Continual improvement is the more practical, slightly differing, notion focused on driving improvement over periods of time, with intervals of interruption; this is used as the basis of the Deming’s development of the Plan-Do-Check-Act iterative cycle on which all our management systems are now based.

ISO 50001, the energy management systems standard, is often the secret to locking in energy improvements longer term. In practice, continual improvement here means periodically reinforcing our gains and behaviors as well as being alert for new (cost-effective) opportunities as they arise.

On each iteration, energy reviews are used to take the time to understand reality, where to focus our efforts and redefine the core objectives, targets and action plans.

Operational controls, design standards and procurement processes set out the restrictors to ensure target behaviors are achieved by reducing the opportunity for other behaviors. Psychologists tell us it is usually better to tell people what to do, rather than what not to do.

Monitoring and targeting, internal audits and management reviews provide the preventative maintenance processes to help reinforce behaviors as well as ensuring we identify opportunities and problems quickly enough to maintain the right momentum; these may use aM&T, dashboards, checklists, trackers, apps, and other such techniques.

Einstein also said

“A person who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new”.

Continual learning, innovation and leadership can also be a key ingredient for developing and sustaining the momentum we need. This often means developing a culture of action-based learning and continuously developing skills and performance with a clear line of sight on the bigger picture.

We are learning all the time which interventions bring the best results. Studies have shown that developing social and physical enablers, particularly involving enhanced local responsibility/ownership and control, is often one of the most effective ways to deliver change.

We can gain mastery by learning from our experiences and developing confidence and resilience, often through perseverance. Making connections with others is a way of drawing on new ideas through, for example, industry networks, clubs and collaborative projects.

Whatever techniques you use, the basic principles of people solutions do not change: it needs to be desirable, focused, easy, continual, but most importantly it needs to be owned by the people involved.

Behavior change is not rocket science but it is hard work. You need your own blend of leadership and management that comes from a combination of good understanding, strategic thinking and a hands-on approach. You will know what works best for your organization.

Further reading

• Energy management systems – Requirements with guidance for use, BS EN ISO 50001:2018.

• Another brick in the wall, Talking Heads, by Michael McGowan, Energy in Buildings and Industry Magazine, September 2018.

• Selling energy savings, retail article by James Brittain, Energy in Buildings and Industry, October 2017.

• Behavior change for low-cost energy savings, by James Brittain, CPD module 02, Series 14, Energy in Buildings and Industry Magazine, June 2016.

• Intervening to change behavior and save energy in the workplace: a systematic review of available evidence, by S. Staddon, C, Cycil, M. Goulden, C Leygue, and A. Spence, Energy Research & Social Science 17 (2016), Elsevier.

• Ten steps to change, by John Mulholland, Energy in Buildings and Industry Magazine, July/August 2014.

Leonard Bernstein, the well-known American composer, once said: “To achieve great things, two things are needed: a plan and not quite enough time”. The time organisations have to accelerate towards Net Zero is shrinking. As part of this, there are increasing pressures on energy users from employees, customers, shareholders, regulators, and other interested parties to significantly improve levels of energy efficiency throughout their operations and processes.

Evidence suggests that behaviour change offers around 50 per cent of the total potential energy savings available. The other 50 per cent comes from technology and yet, as important as it is, technology typically gets 95 per cent of the focus. A better balance is required to ensure that the hidden and largely untapped savings available from behaviour change are realised.

Behaviour change is considered in its broadest sense, targeting attitudes, behaviours and decisions implemented by those who influence energy performance as well as those who have direct hands-on control of equipment and systems. Getting behaviours right also enhances and protects the legacy benefits of technology investments as they rely on sociotechnical systems for success.

Energy Conscious Organisation (EnCO) is a framework developed by Energy Services & Technology Association and the Energy Institute to help incorporate people measures into energy management strategies and plans.

The vision is to excite and equip enough colleagues to challenge the norm and to encourage widespread adoption of energy efficiency good practices throughout the organisation.

At the heart of the EnCO framework is the EnCO Matrix.

A Balanced High EnCO profile across all pillars is associated with a mature energy management programme that accelerates progress towards sustainable Net Zero goals.

Low scores across some or all pillars are indicative of significant opportunities to improve an approach.

A strategic gap analysis is therefore used to compare the ‘desired’ position (often targeting three to five years ahead) with the current profile, to feed into the development for the catalyst for change.

To bridge the gap, change makers need to understand what motivates the people involved on a personal level. People’s actions are often driven by emotive connections that come about from connecting with colleagues, having fun, a better workplace, better skills, achievement, recognition and reward. A successful catalyst often includes targeted co-benefits resulting in a ‘win-win’.

The business case is set up by focusing on the key strategic activities which make the biggest difference in delivering the required goals. This should address the organisation’s readiness to deliver change (available resources, knowledge etc), key barriers (capabilities, attitudes etc) and its ability to sustain change. T

o develop a good plan, focus on overcoming any deficiencies across the EASRA pillars, rather than specifically following a framework.

1) Balanced Low

Profile 1 is uniformly low across all pillars. This is often underpinned by low overall engagement. Energy performance, for example, may have been marginalised because it has been overly delegated to a specialist, service partner or aM&T system.

Having top managers on board is essential. They need to demonstrate their commitment by defining a compelling vision, providing the resources needed and taking interest in progress made.

There also needs to be a strategy to engage Significant Energy Users (SEUs), those who can impact on or influence significant energy use. This includes HR, procurement and development colleagues as well as building users, facilities and operational teams. Don’t forget consultants, suppliers and contractors.

All Energy Users (AEUs) also need to understand the energy policies in place, the benefits of improved energy performance and their roles and responsibilities.

The overall plan and channels used should achieve engagement and also momentum for a balanced approach.

A high profile launch event can create a good splash to raise awareness but has little momentum.

Digital or print communications also often have limited shelf-life. Training, performance appraisals, incentives and suggestion schemes are all examples of channels that offer more momentum.

2) Unbalanced

A profile highly developed in Engagement and Adaption but which lags in other areas operates in a positive atmosphere but lacks substance.

Colleagues being alert to avoidable energy waste, before investing in clean and green technologies, is a fundamental principle of the energy hierarchy.

AEUs need to be alert to the impact of their activities on energy performance. An SEU may negatively impact on overall performance, due to increased energy use, when making operational decisions for seemingly good reasons.

Command and control approaches with too many organisational procedures can reduce alertness. Nudge, prod or persuasion techniques are generally more effective; sharing energy consumption profiles, for example, can help highlight opportunities.

Critical mass theory implies that we need at least 2-5 per cent of colleagues taking simple actions every day to reach a tipping point of energy consciousness for lasting change. For an organisation of 4,000 people, this means involving at least 80 SEUs.

Energy champions can influence others by example. A network of volunteers can promote energy saving values and connect colleagues together. To be effective, they need to be carefully recruited, trained and supported.

For a balanced approach, colleagues need to be highly motivated and highly aware. Asking people to rate their awareness and motivation levels can be a useful way to track levels of alertness while getting them to think more about opportunities and getting new champions on board.

3) High Peak

Profile 3 is highly developed in one pillar only. This could be any element and is most commonly related to the style or strengths of the manager leading the programme.

As well as motivation and opportunity, people need to have the capability to deliver change. Teams need to have a balance in skills to implement an integrated approach, highly developed across all pillars.

Training is often a key strategic activity that helps raise the other pillars simultaneously. A training strategy should be driven by a training needs analysis, mapped across the key audiences. Colleagues need to know what they are expected to do and be competent so actions are quick, easy and intuitive for those involved.

The whole team has a key role to communicate the vision and to lead by example. It is important to be able to communicate well with colleagues to gain and build trust. Collaborative workshops and events are effective ways to bring people and teams together to develop alertness, desire and capability and trial solutions at the same time.

HR colleagues are often essential key connector champions for continual learning and up-skilling.

4) Low Valley 

Highly developed in all but one pillar highlights the need to develop this one aspect to fully benefit from the other activities.

This could be any element but quite often what’s lacking is recognition. Robust data systems are needed to track savings against baselines and targets. Ideally, this should disaggregate interventions for detailed evaluation. Longer-term monitoring and targeting is essential because impacts can dissipate over time, but this doesn’t have to be complex.

Full adherence with the International Performance Measurement and Verification Protocol (IPMVP) is desirable but is not always practical; it is the most widely used protocol for quantifying results from investments.

A measurement and verification (M&V) plan should be agreed prior to the programme. Involving stakeholders to develop the methodology ensures it’s owned by the people involved. Methods to adjust baselines for both routine (e.g. weather) and non-routine adjustments (e.g. changes in floor area) should be considered.

A balance of measures is also required to sustain and propel momentum. At high level, energy performance can be measured in absolute terms at whole-facility level. This verifies total savings but, as this is a lagging (output) measure, this can’t influence momentum.

Indicative measures are used to explain why performance has changed. System energy productivity or utilisation intensity measures require investment in sub-metering and a sufficient run-up period to calibrate baseline models.

Leading (input) indicators offer an opportunity to control momentum but do not guarantee success; it can be difficult to define which measures are best. Scorecards can track observed behaviours and team actions against targets. The repertoire would be specific to the organisation, site or team. 

Dashboards, balanced scorecards or crediting systems can be used to help facilitate quicker and better decisions, incentivisation and celebrating success. Do not rely too heavily on incentivisation as there’s a risk of reversal if the incentive is taken away.

Focus on a simple strategic set of concise measures for which everyone understands how they contribute to strategic goals. Beware of data overload, data rich and information poor (DRIP syndrome).

5) Jagged

A mix of some developed pillars with others not so developed is likely to be typical for most organisations. An uneven profile highlights the weaknesses that can undermine the strengths.

Organisations need to be able to continually adapt to plug the gaps and respond to minimise risk and maximise opportunities in a timely way to sustain and propel momentum.

The energy landscape is continually changing and this is becoming more dynamic as the pressures to improve energy performance increase. 

Surveillance controls monitor changes in stakeholder requirements as well as internal factors and external threats. Continually check that goals are still realistic and achievable, now and in the future.

A good plan needs to be agile focused on the key strategic activities, with a clear line of sight to the strategic objectives.

Adaptations are about continually increasing the means and reducing barriers to increase capability, opportunity or motivation. 

ISO 50001 is the energy management system standard that helps target the key activities. As well as energy policies, processes and action plans, the standard focuses on operational controls and design procurement standards to sustain behaviours. Energy and management reviews, objectives and targets and strategic controls are used to self-propel momentum. 

General George C Marshall, famous for his World War 2 planning and his plan to rebuild Europe, said: “The one great element in continuing the success of an offensive is maintaining the momentum.”

6) Balanced High 

Highly developed across all pillars generally at levels 3 or 4 is indicative of the well balance and mature approach of an EnCO.

EnCOs are more sustainable, cost effective and collaborative. The business case for interventions to get to the EnCO level comes from defining and questioning reality by asking the right questions at the right time, and the EASRA framework can facilitate this process.

Is everyone engaged in the right way? Are all teams alert to the energy opportunities? Do they have the right skills to exploit them? Are you recognising, measuring and reporting results? Do you need to adapt your policies/ processes to drive continual improvement? What’s next to guarantee momentum?

There needs to be a compelling vision and clear balanced plan in place with the sense of urgency. Align big ideas with strategy in a way that will excite decision makers and colleagues alike.

There also needs to be a strong team in place, with clear roles and responsibilities. Remember people often don’t like change. Don’t expect results too quickly – it may take time.

Don’t overcomplicate it, keep it simple. Aim to balance quick wins with longer-term actions. Pareto’s 80/20 principle encourages us to target the 20 per cent of the scope that yields 80 per cent of the results.

Overall, the plan will depend on the organisation; there’s no silver bullet, every organisation is different. The focus often should be on blending people and technical solutions, with targeted organisational strategic controls alongside.

Tactical techniques support strategic activities and there are many to choose from; EnCO defines over 140 different interventions. Organisations will need their own unique combination to deliver change for themselves.

Any organisation can become an EnCO by demonstrating ‘Balanced High’ achieving outcomes cross the five EnCO pillars: Engagement, Alertness, Skills, Recognition and Adaption.

EnCO registration and display of the logo act as evidence of good practice to shareholders, regulators, customers and colleagues through externally verified recognition. Becoming part of the wider EnCO community also enables sharing of good practice to further drive the continual improvement mindset needed.

Registered EnCO Consultants (status gained through training) and Approved EnCO Practitioners (with proven experience) can support organisations to achieve the EnCO status.

References:

1. Case-studies and process, EnCO Website at www.energyconsciousorganisation.org.uk
2. Making change the norm, by Jes Rutter, Energy in Buildings and Industry Magazine, Feb 2021
3. Energy consciousness has never been more important, by Jes Rutter, Energy World, Jan 2021
4. Tools and techniques to deliver behaviour change, by James Brittain, CPD module 06, Series 16, Energy in Buildings and Industry Magazine, Nov/Dec 2018
5. Energy management systems – Requirements with guidance for use, BS EN ISO 50001:2018
6. International Performance Measurement and Verification Protocol, Core Concepts, EVO 10000 – 1.2016
7. Behaviour change for low-cost energy savings, by James Brittain, CPD module 02, Series 14, Energy in Buildings and Industry Magazine, June 2016
8. Ten steps to change, by John Mulholland, Energy in Buildings and Industry Magazine, July/August 2014.