Get Funded.
Tips for getting your budget holder on board.
74% of of the Sustainability Leaders I work with are fully or partially funded by their employer.
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While many choose to self-fund, employer funding does establish that your organisation is serious about its sustainability agenda and supporting their people to deliver the change they’re looking for.
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For those interested in having a conversation with a budget holder, this is a list of advice and resources that have helped alumni communicate the value of the coaching as a professional learning opportunity.
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Share the most popular key takeaways and add in specifics for how you could implement these in your work and benefit your team.
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Share the Change Culture. Act on Climate report. Your employer may not be fully aware of the unique pressures that someone in your role faces. This will help them understand the context in which you operate and the opportunity costs this creates for your organisation. ​
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Compare coaching to other learning opportunities. The price of the programme is probably lower than the ticket price and cost of being out of the office as well as travel and accommodation for a conference. The takeaways are also much more significant than what could be learned in one day or weekend.
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Let them know that coaching is structured specifically to support you to have greater impact at work. Rather than a week out of the office, you'll have regular touchpoints to address the live challenges you're facing and check ins to help you embed learnings and apply them to your work.
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Show them who the other participants have been - in each cohort we have experienced sustainability professionals from market-leading organisations, including; BT, KPMG, Halfords, Pukka as well as specialist sustainability companies such; Systemiq and Carbon Intelligence. The most common job titles include: Director/Head of/Manager of ESG/Sustainability/CSR/Supply Chain. A small sample of their testimonials, can be found here, including videos and written case studies.
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Create a rough business case. What would it mean for your organisation if you were able to be 10% more effective in your role? Useful resources have included:
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Let them know that not only will you develop yourself professionally and personally through the coaching, you’ll learn valuable new skills to support you in your role, and you’ll also build a network of informed, connected professionals who will help you execute your work.
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Key Takeaways.
1. Clarity on the work that matters so you can deliver change strategically
Through coaching, you’ll create space to step back, to creatively problem solve and make truly great decisions about where to focus your efforts for the biggest impact. You'll protect the organisation, and delight shareholders, customers and employees by being better able to deliver on the organisations sustainability promises.
2. You'll become a more skilled influencer, an asset to the organisation
By clarifying a positive vision of the future and learning positive influencing skills alumni describe being better able to represent the organisation and inspire the team. Co-ordinating across the organisation gets easier as you get more people on board and taking action. Time and resources are saved as action is aligned, with more collaborative solutions reached in less time. Those in externally facing roles often report that new and deeper partnerships are formed more easily.
3. Embed ways to work more healthily and productively
It's not uncommon at the outset for alumni to be exhausted and close to burnout. Many of the alumni note that the programme has helped them to establish new approaches to work. Approaches that allow them to get more done by being better able to pace themselves, think through challenges and avoid wasting time on unhelpful strategies. This is as key for your wellbeing as it is for your capability to deliver the organisational goals.
4. Create a confident, optimistic leader
Optimism and energy is one of the key things alumni describe as a benefit of the programme. This is, of course, huge for your capability to deliver against the demanding ambitions you likely have. On top of this, the deeper level of emotional understanding of yourself and those around you makes you better able to support a team and contribute to an enviable organisational culture.
5. Access to support and ideas from outside of the organisation
Sustainability professionals are often working on their own, or in small teams. That can mean it's harder to get a range of ideas about how to approach challenges, or a sense of how challenges might show up in other organisations. By working with a specialist sustainability coach who works across many organisations, you get access to the a range of solutions that you can pick from to support your business.
"Can’t recommend it highly enough! It's unlocked so much unlocking positivity and resilience. I've got a strong foundation to navigate challenges with confidence, clarity and purpose."
"Talking about climate is often the hardest and thanks to Claire I just had three great conversations on climate. Not only did I not feel like a party pooper, all three signed up for our climate action programme. Result!"
I'm clear on the path forward and how to make it happen but for me, the biggest change is in my energy and enthusiasm. There's been a huge reduction in the noise of negativity and distraction."
Kelly Moir
Sustainability Director, BT
Sonia Lakshman
Founder, Couch to Carbon Zero
Doug Flynn
Biodiversity Consultant, SystemiQ