Legislation evolves rapidly, as do environmental, economic and social challenges. Not surprisingly, companies often struggle to keep pace.
In Brussels, the regional “Shifting Economy” strategy has established exemplarity criteria, increasing subsidies and financial support for companies demonstrating “exemplarity” from March 2024. It is, therefore, essential to support small businesses so that you can seize these opportunities.
With this in mind, Groupe One has launched Explore, an innovative program designed to transform your business into a driver for positive change, backed by 25 years of commitment to helping create and support companies with a positive impact.
In this program, Tapio has partnered up with Groupe One to enable participants to carry out a carbon report and better guide their action plan.
How can we effectively support small businesses in their sustainable development?
A successful coaching program should enable companies to take action and improve their practices. A classic consultancy assignment where you’re given a roadmap is often not enough to bring about long-term, sustainable change within a company.
Groupe One identified three fundamental elements to make change possible, and integrated them into their Explore coaching program.
1. Carrying out an environmental and social assessment
We’ve all heard of companies that have decided to go paperless in the office or offer their employees smartphones with zero plastic packaging. While these actions are essential, it’s also fundamental to dedicate our time and energy to actions that can reduce our environmental impact as much as possible.
The first step to a successful support program is to assess the environmental and societal issues that your company might be facing. This enables you to identify the areas that need the most attention. In this context, the carbon report, although it only addresses climate change, is a tool that allows you to prioritize the areas of work in your action plan.
In the case of the Explore program, such a diagnosis is the first step. In particular, Groupe One’s coaches use the carbon report to objectivize the climatic goals of the company’s activities and prioritize areas of work to maximise the action plan’s positive impact.
Groupe One has chosen to use the Tapio platform not only to account for corporate emissions but also because it allows us to establish scenarios and projections for reducing our carbon footprint to optimise the companies’ action plans. This will also enable Groupe One’s coaches, one year after the support, to measure the emissions of the participating companies again to assess the impact of the actions taken.
2. Receiving close support from a coach-transition
For smaller organizations, time and budget can hinder implementing change in their business. Moreover, simply receiving instructions on what to do doesn’t always guarantee effective implementation.
Groupe One’s solution is to assign a coach-transition to each participant. His role is to act as a conductor, accompanying the company throughout the process: from diagnosis to implementation of the action plan, he is there to support and facilitate the transition to action.
The coach-transition spends several hours on your side to better understand the business and support you effectively through change. This proximity and the agile nature of small businesses will enable you to quickly observe the results of the actions supported by the coach-transition.
3. Rely on the strength of a network of experts
Initiating change can be difficult when you’re among the first. It can be hard to find the right sustainable suppliers, partners or organisations to approach.
That’s why another essential point of the Explore program is the strength of the network. After all, the transition must be a collective effort.
Thanks to Groupe One’s network, the coach-transition puts the entrepreneur in touch with the right experts, saving time for the company. For example, you’ll be able to work with UCM to plan your energy package to reduce your energy bill while lowering your environmental impact.
The Explore program: customized support for all business sectors
Groupe One’s Explore program is aimed at small businesses wishing to make a significant transition towards more sustainable activities, whatever their sector of activity.
What does it consist of?
Here are the main stages of the Explore program.
- An assessment of your sustainable development challenges, including a carbon report on the Tapio platform;
- A concrete action plan tailor-made for your sector;
- A dedicated coach-transition – over 20 hours of coaching and 4 days at your company to help you implement your action plan;
- Support in obtaining labels such as Entreprise Éco-dynamique and Good Food;
- Networking with industry players and our community of transition entrepreneurs.
What areas will you work on?
This varies from company to company. Groupe One offers companies the opportunity to choose their areas of work, considering the impacts identified during the assessment and the topics that excite the participants. We have integrated this second aspect because to stay motivated in the long term, it’s essential to get involved in subjects we’re passionate about.
Depending on the priorities identified together, we can work on :
- reducing waste and energy consumption;
- sourcing from local suppliers;
- integrating the circular economy into the business model;
- communication on positive impact actions;
- involving teams in the transition process by raising awareness.
Why participate in the program as a small business?
The Explore Program provides companies the tools, resources and support they need to begin their transition. By helping them identify opportunities for improvement, implement sustainable practices, and connect with other change agents, the program encourages them to pursue their commitment to being companies with a positive impact.
This commitment will enable you to reduce your environmental footprint, improve your brand image, meet consumers’ growing expectations in terms of sustainability, and innovate to remain competitive in the marketplace.
How do I sign up for Explore?
Contact grow@groupeone.be or visit the website.