Dream team

The concept of teamwork may seem like a very small issue in the shadow of a larger business sustainability pursuit. However, sustainability teams and the expanded definitions of teamwork are proving to be far more powerful than most business leaders might have originally thought.

To most people working in a traditional business setting, teamwork means working well with coworkers on a defined task or project. However, today’s high-performance team activities are expanding stakeholder cooperation and communication through the entire value chain. Discussed in some detail in the article, Making Star Teams Out of Star Players, the author provides insights from leading business sustainability organizations. The post focuses on best practices on identifying and developing next generation skills.

“If you have world-class talent of all kinds on a team, you multiply the productivity and performance advantages that stand-alone stars deliver…Putting the best thinkers together can spur creativity and ideas that no one member of the team would have developed alone.”

How can teamwork accelerate CSR initiatives? Consider the use of green teams. Upon first glance, the idea of a corporate green team may seem fairly simple — a small effort that allows a subset of employees to gather around a shared interest. In practice, however, green teams can be much more powerful than that. They can inspire, activate, and engage employees to create meaningful changes within a company. The post Winning Characteristics of Green Teams offers ideas on getting started with green teams. Below we focus on how green teams advance a corporate sustainability plan.