Achieving Sustainability – A Key Ingredient

Achieving Sustainability

By: Ron Benjamin

The overall goal of achieving sustainability for our planet requires that all systems on the planet are also becoming more sustainable over time. And while there are large-scale world-wide endeavors, such as manufacturing, agriculture and aquaculture, energy generation, technology, and the entire service sector that fall under that global sustainability umbrella, so too must small business do its fair share as well.

Optimizing sustainability in the dry cleaning segment of the service sector has been a goal for GreenEarth Cleaning since our inception in 1999. And in that regard, we have focused on finding ways to enhance the dry cleaning process so that it allows more sustainable operations.

However, one key ingredient for making our industry sustainable over the longer term is our ability to attract and retain talented people who care about the environment and operating in a way that is better for both the dry cleaning company they work for and the planet we care about.

Recently a study was conducted by Universum where 80,000 undergraduate students were surveyed. The students shared what they value in their careers, what drives them in the workplace, and where they want to work.

The top five most attractive attributes in a potential employer for students in 2017 are:

“inspiring purpose, a creative and dynamic work environment, respect for its people, secure

employment, and leaders who will support my development”

Many of our GreenEarth Affiliates have been able to attract young people who care about the planet and who are seeking the opportunity to work in a small business environment where they can learn all aspects of the business. If we really want to make dry cleaning more sustainable, we must be sure that we are attracting young talent who can insure that we are serving our customers today and that we are making our world a better place for tomorrow.