Employee involvement, pollution control and pieces to the puzzle

Abstract

Employee involvement is essential to improving pollution control. Organizations like Dow Chemical have been able to use employee involvement to reduce pollution. It begins by understanding, as Dow does, that “If pollution is a cost to you (my competitor) and a cost to me, I win if my costs are lower”. Controlling these costs requires people to think about it ‐ a lot. Everyone must accept ownership for pollution. All the pieces must fit together. Unfortunately, even the most advanced companies are still struggling with these issues. An anonymous survey was sent to some of the top pollution‐reducing companies in the world. Responses to the questionnaire that focused on a wide range of issues often proved surprising to disturbing. Executives in charge sometimes felt they had employee involvement but few of the operational conditions for it to exist. Dow Chemical provides a rare example of being able to connect all the pieces, through its three keys.