{"id":183161,"date":"2021-06-08T15:46:23","date_gmt":"2021-06-08T19:46:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/fiix.wpengine.com\/?p=183161"},"modified":"2021-11-23T12:37:41","modified_gmt":"2021-11-23T16:37:41","slug":"fiix-guide-to-sustainable-development-goals-b2b","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fiixsoftware.com\/blog\/fiix-guide-to-sustainable-development-goals-b2b\/","title":{"rendered":"How we tackle the UN Sustainable Development Goals as a medium-sized business"},"content":{"rendered":"

This article was written by Katie Allen, Fiix\u2019s Sustainability and Social Impact Manager.<\/em><\/p>\n

There\u2019s quite a bit of buzz around the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) these days \u2014 and rightfully so! This is the first time we have been able to act together on a global scale to create change for the better. Every individual, government, and organization has an opportunity to create a more sustainable world, and this framework can help guide our actions. <\/p>\n

We\u2019ve used the UN Sustainable Development Goals to guide our social impact work at Fiix for the last five years. Our journey to achieving these goals and our progress is outlined below. <\/p>\n

What are the UN Sustainable Development Goals?<\/h2>\n

The UN Sustainable Development Goals are 17 objectives set out by the United Nations in late 2015. They are the blueprint to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all. The UN set a target date to complete these goals 2030, which means we have just nine more years to collectively reduce poverty, inequality, climate change, environmental degradation, and injustice to the levels laid out by the SDGs.<\/p>\n

\"Sustainable<\/figure>\n

How we incorporated the goals<\/h2>\n

Our high level approach to incorporating the UN SDGs into our impact strategy<\/h3>\n
    \n
  1. Understand your industry challenges and set your organizational goals.<\/li>\n
  2. Engage your stakeholders in the process to understand what their priorities and expectations are.<\/li>\n
  3. Track, measure, and communicate progress against the UN SDGs and how they tie to your organizational goals.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    These goals are not the responsibility of governments alone. Businesses must use their considerable influence and resources to create change as well. Many are doing just that by incorporating the SDGs into their strategies. This is a process we undertook at Fiix and here\u2019s how we did it:<\/p>\n

    1. Start at the top<\/h3>\n

    We started by looking at our business model, our industry, and what challenges we face as a software company. This was critical for us to create alignment between our goals and the goals of the international community. This alignment allowed us to create meaningful change at the local level that contributes to corporate objectives, while advancing the global sustainability agenda.<\/p>\n

    When we began this process, we were using the triple bottom line model (people, planet, profit) to guide our actions. Under each pillar, we committed to being a more inclusive, sustainable, and responsible business.<\/p>\n

    We broke that down further to explain what each commitment meant to us in three high-level goals:<\/p>\n

      \n
    1. We want the technology industry to be accessible and inclusive, so anyone can participate in tech.<\/li>\n
    2. We want to make the planet a better place for future generations by supporting initiatives for climate change mitigation.<\/li>\n
    3. We want to be profitable in a responsible and ethical way, using 1% of revenue to make a meaningful difference in the world.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      2. Consult stakeholders<\/h3>\n

      While every goal is important, we knew we had to narrow our focus or risk spreading ourselves too thin and accomplishing nothing. We wanted to choose the goals to focus on together with our employees and customers. We did this by sending a survey to all staff and customers to better understand the issues that were most important to them. <\/p>\n

      Our stakeholders ended up selecting five UN SDGs that we\u2019d put all our efforts into helping accomplish:<\/p>\n

      \n
      \"Quality<\/figure>\n
      \"Gender<\/figure>\n
      \"Decent<\/figure>\n
      \"Responsible<\/figure>\n
      \"Life<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

      3. Track, measure, and report<\/h3>\n

      To effectively track and measure our impact on the chosen goals, we identified targets that connected to our overall business strategy. Each UN SDG has roughly 20 targets and we narrowed it down to one or two. <\/p>\n

      Next, it was a matter of making progress against these targets. We initiated a number of programs internally, and externally, and we partnered with community organizations that supported the goals. This ranged from implementing more equitable policies to partnering with local nonprofits. You can see all our programs outlined in the table below.<\/p>\n

      All of our targets and our progress toward them is communicated to our stakeholders at https:\/\/fiixsoftware.com\/impact\/<\/a>. Transparency is critical to an effective program as it keeps us accountable. This is our way of highlighting where we\u2019re hitting our targets and making a positive impact as well as where we\u2019re falling short and where we could be doing better. Traditionally, we developed a physical report every year that was also turned into a digital copy. But we moved away from this model and added everything to the Fiix website. Not only does this provide a digital dashboard that makes it easier to see where we\u2019re living up to expectations and where we need to close the gap, it also can be updated regularly, instead of just once a year. We want to remove any and all barriers to the reader and ensure the message has as much reach as possible.<\/p>\n

      Progress to date<\/h2>\n

      Here\u2019s the impact of our work so far:<\/p>\n

      \n
      \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
      \n

      Commitment<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/th>\n

      		\n

      Fiix Goal<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/th>\n

      		\n

      UN Sustainable Development Goal<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/th>\n

      		\n

      Related Target<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/th>\n

      		\n

      Progress to date (May, 2021)<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n

      \n

      Inclusivity<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

      		\n

      We want the technology industry to be accessible and inclusive, so anyone can participate in tech.<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

      		\n
      \"Quality<\/figure>\n

      Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all. <\/p>\n<\/td>\n

      		\n

      Increase the number of youth and adults who have relevant skills, including technical and vocational skills, for employment, decent jobs and entrepreneurship. <\/p>\n<\/td>\n

      		\n
      <\/td>\n<\/td>\n\n
      \"Gender<\/figure>\n

      Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls. <\/p>\n<\/td>\n

      		\n

      Ensure women\u2019s full and effective participation and equal opportunities for leadership at all levels of decision-making in political, economic and public life.<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

      		\n
        \n
      • Increased representation of all women-identifying employees from 18% to 27%<\/li>\n
      • Implemented a robust diversity, inclusion, belonging, and equity strategy<\/li>\n
      • Hosted 10 women in tech events to build community and increase leadership skills<\/li>\n
      • Donated $21,000 to Women in Reliability and Asset Management to increase representation in the industry<\/li>\n
      • Donated $2,500 to Jean Augustine Centre<\/a> to empower young women<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      \n

      Sustainability<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

      		\n

      We want to make the planet a better place for future generations by supporting initiatives for climate change mitigation.<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

      		\n
      \"Responsible<\/figure>\n

      Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all. <\/p>\n<\/td>\n

      		\n

      Substantially reduce waste generation through prevention, reduction, recycling and reuse.<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

      		\n
      <\/td>\n<\/td>\n\n
      \"Life<\/figure>\n

      Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss. <\/p>\n<\/td>\n

      		\n

      Mobilize and significantly increase financial resources from all sources to conserve and sustainably use biodiversity and ecosystems.<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

      		\n
      \n

      Responsibility<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

      		\n

      We want to be profitable in a responsible and ethical way, putting 1% of revenue to work to make a meaningful difference in the world.<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

      		\n
      \"Decent<\/figure>\n

      Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all. <\/p>\n<\/td>\n

      		\n

      Support productive activities, decent job creation, entrepreneurship, creativity and innovation, and encourage the formalization and growth of micro-, small- and medium-sized enterprises, including through access to financial services.<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

      		\n