Back in September of 2007 I wrote a post on the Origins of Postgreen and never followed it up with a final post on the subject. Well, now that Nic has gotten me back into blogging here at Postgreen, I guess I should finish this up.

Last time I left off with me finishing college and searching for my first job in the real world (not the TV show). I looked at two basic types of companies while searching for a job:

1. Large companies with good salaries, benefits, training and perks where I would most likely sit in a tiny cubicle and do the same thing day in and day out while attending school at night to obtain my MBA which the company would pay for.
2. Small to mid-sized companies that were growing but seemed to have no idea what they were doing. These companies came with less impressive salaries and benefits, but I would get a lot more responsibility and opportunity to try my hand at different positions.

It should come as no surprise that I chose the second path since most of my major decisions take the opposite route of what the average and probably smarter person would do in my same situation. My first job was as a Manufacturing Engineer at a $100M barcode scanner manufacturer in South Jersey.

While I was at this job, I was faced with to opportunity to pursue an MBA at night. I went back and forth with this decision for a while and ultimately decided that if I was going to start my own business, real world experience would be much more valuable than an MBA. MBA’s seemed to be better suited for those seeking a career in corporate America that need to be well versed in the latest jargon and buzz words.

So, after this decision was made I decided to take part in an experimental job rotation program at the company that would allow me to gain experience in a variety of departments to make me a well-rounded and more valuable employee. I was the first and last person to try this program. It took me to such departments as purchasing, scheduling, project management and eventually product marketing. While I was in this job rotation program, the company still did not spend squat on training so I had my boss buy me as many books as possible and always went to at least one major training of my own choosing each year. While they didn’t have a specific budget for this, they seemed excited that I wanted to learn on my own and found a way to pay for this training. I made sure that every book I bought and every training I went to could also benefit me when I ultimately decided to start my own company.

I worked at this company for about seven years up until I quit to start Postgreen in the fall of 2007. More on that next time…

This is a new weekly series (Look at That) that Nic told me I have to do. Every Friday I’ll post some of the best and more interesting green links I’ve found in the past week. So sit back, grab a pint and kick off your weekend with a few green links:

1. I got really excited about this fantastic method of controlling and monitoring home energy usage with an iPhone. Then I realized it is just a concept. Still worth checking out though.
2. We’ve been looking at different solar thermal setups at the 100K House blog over the past few months. Here is a great article on someone who designed and installed their own solar thermal setup for only $3,000 and are already saving up to $100 a month. Not bad.
3. Want to have your home rebuilt to LEED Silver standards after a fire? Check out the latest in insurance - Green Insurance.
4. I can’t think of any company that could build prefab homes better than my favorite auto manufacturer. Kaizen!
5. Lastly, we are looking at Frigidaire appliances over at the 100K project and I stumbled across this Frigidaire model that includes a built-in kegerator and tap on the front where a water dispenser would usually be found. I hope they have an Energy Star version!

One of the reasons we started a blog hear at Postgreen was to talk about starting and growing a small business with more than just financial profit in mind. Since starting Postgreen, I have become more familiar with the term “Triple Bottom Line” which embodies the core values we had in mind when starting the company.

Triple Bottom Line Definition (”TBL”, “3BL” or “People, Planet, Profit”)

Wikipedia defines Triple Bottom Line something like this: Triple bottom line accounting expands the traditional reporting framework to take into account environmental and social performance in addition to financial performance.
The concept of TBL demands that a company’s responsibility be to ’stakeholders’ rather than shareholders. In this case, ’stakeholders’ refers to anyone who is influenced, either directly or indirectly, by the actions of the firm. According to the stakeholder theory, the business entity should be used as a vehicle for coordinating stakeholder interests, instead of maximising shareholder (owner) profit.

The three bottom lines are “Social, Economic and Environmental” or “People, Planet, Profit.” I prefer the latter or the 3P’s.

My first real exposure to the TBL concpet was at last year’s Social Venture Institute. I had heard a lot of the stats and concepts mentioned at this event before, but never at once under one term like Triple Bottom Line. I think what struck me most was how so many small business were adopting this way of operating into their businesses with the goal of continually improving on each of the three L’s each year. For anyone who knows we well, they will know that I am pretty big on this ‘continual improvement’ idea.

Anyways, long story short, we are creating a new category - Triple Bottom Line - on our blog to post about the concept of TBL and what we are doing at Postgreen to continually improve our positive impact to People, Planet and Profit. Hopefully other will get something out of our lessons learned in this arena.

Promise 2: I pledge to make any office renovation a green renovation.

This promise should be easier to keep than most of the others on the list as it is something that probably doesn’t come up every day or even every week. Unless you are masochistic and/or easily bored, you aren’t renovating the office very often. In fact, most of you have probably never renovated your offices and are just looking around now and thinking, “this place could use some sprucing up.” Well, before you spruce up take a minute and make sure your spruce is sustainable.

The home office we currently work out of hasn’t demanded too much in the way of renovations, and since we didn’t take before and after pictures it may be kind of hard to see what has changed. In order to better illustrate the green renovations we have made we have been forced to borrow before pictures that approximate the state in which the place began.

A Postgreen Renovation Example

(Before picture not actually of the Postgreen office.)

The Conference Table
We thought our original conference table was a little out of date and a lot uncomfortable.

So, we (by we I mean Chad) grabbed some construction scrap materials and some low VOC finish and went to work on building our beatiful new table for talking across. Now, we just need to find enough people who want to talk to us to make this thing look full.

There have been a few other small renovations like sealing doors & windows and low VOC painting and staining, but nothing really exciting. Don’t worry though. You’ll be the first to know if we undertake a larger, more interesting renovation project.

Chad’s Green Office Tips:

Performing office renovations falls outside of the realm of more minor items on the list like using CFL light bulbs and regulating the thermostat more wisely. A renovation could include painting the office, installing a new bathroom or kitchenette or simply setting up a new workstation for a new hire.

Below is a list of recommendations when embarking on such green renovations for the office. I do not go into detail on specific products as there are quite a number out there now and the list is growing every day. A simple Google search should reveal good options and if not, feel free to ask in the comments and we’ll look into an item for you.

1. Use Low or No VOC paints, stains, sealants, caulks and finishes of any kind.
2. Incorporate used items from a local thrift store or architectural salvage shop when possible.
3. Use low-flow plumbing fixtures including dual flush toilets when renovating kitchens and baths. If you are really adventurous, try a composting toilet.
4. Use recycled/reclaimed and low-VOC content materials when possible for things like flooring, tile and ceiling panels.
5. Consider possible solutions to encourage natural daylight and views for all employees.
6. When replacing HVAC equipment always use high-efficiency equipment and don’t be afraid to explore innovative solutions that may use significantly less energy such as natural ventilation.
7. When using lumber or sheet products, try to use FSC certified and zero formeldahyde products as much as possible.
8. Use local labor, material suppliers and consultants when renovating.
9. Be creative.

Many green renovations can also save money for new businesses tight on cash. For example, two used filing cabinets and a used door make a great desk for a fraction of the price and carbon footprint of a new one. Be creative and focus on the renovations that are going to provide you and your employees a healthier and more pleasurable work environment.

This post is part of our ongoing, 30 part series breaking down the Green Office Pledge. Sign up for the pledge and be sure to check out the rest of the series for more tips and anectdotes.

We have celebrated our nation’s independence, started a delicious breakfast club and begun a significant blog undertaking, and I still find time to scour the internet for entertaining and educational links just for you. See how much I care. Now, look at this . . .

• Finally someone found a good use for Coors Lite that doesn’t involve incapacitating frat boys.
• Hello new epoch. Goodbye world as we know it?
• The orientation of your toilet paper roll is no longer a simple style choice. Careful consideration of the over/under debate reveals the proper way to hang your wipes. Did someone say low fiction coefficient?
• Kegs are green. I just wanted to get that out of the way so there are no doubts about my reasons for posting this. Yes, I like beer. I like outdoor parties where said beer is served. But, in the end kegs are green and that is why I am pointing at this.
• Since we are on the topic of beer anyway, let’s talk about accessories.
• Do not go gentle into that good night . . . go green.
• And finally a little something for your inner geek. Though I have to say the Millennium Falcon did not look properly maintained for optimal mileage.

Promise 1: I pledge to designate a Green Office Advocate for my company to hold us accountable for our pledge.

Every effort needs a leader just like every body needs a head. Without heads there would be a lot of bodies wandering into traffic, walking into walls and generally screwing up anything requiring cognitive thought. In the same way plans for which no one has direct responsibility tend to self-destruct or fizzle out as time passes. At the very least, every effort needs someone to blame when things go wrong.

The Green Office Pledge, if taken seriously (which we encourage), is a complicated undertaking. The position of Green Office Advocate is vital to maintaining the momentum and focus needed to make progress in each of the other 29 promises to which you have agreed. The person chosen for this position should be considered carefully. Traits such as organization, leadership, communication skills and a drive to institute change are good indicators of an acceptable candidate. Though, in lieu of these, a simple will to do th job could suffice. It will be a thankless task at times and in many cases require more work with no remuneration. Thus, it is important that the person sees the result as its own reward.

The process of choosing a Green Office Advocate will vary in each organization. Some might hold an election, interview potential appointees, or if you have a small office (like ours) and the candidates are equally qualified (or not), you might resort to rock paper scissors as we did.

Postgreen Green Office Advocate Rock Paper Scissors Contest: Best of Three

We shall see whether rock paper scissors skills equate to Green Office Advocate ability. I am looking forward to the new role and the power and prestige that goes along with it.

Chad’s Green Office Tips

Some of the responsibilities and duties of the Green Office Advocate could include the following:

1. Dissemination of the Green Office Pledge to all employees
2. Periodic training for employees as need on green office initiatives
3. Tracking of Green Office measureables (utility bills, steps implemented…)
4. Monthly updates to the office on overall progress towards greening the office
5. Organizing green office work events to collectively green the office

Last week we received an email about the Green Office Pledge. This pledge, designed by a group of Philadelphia organizations, is a challenge to local businesses to green up their act. Basically, the hope is that each business will fill out the online web form to “sign” the pledge and then attempt to abide by thirty different promises. Naturally, we liked the idea behind this and quickly added our name to the growing list of pledges. Now we are going to take it one step further.

This intro is the first in a thirty-one (yes I said 31) part blog series which will look closely at each promise in the Green Office Pledge. We will discuss the merits of each promise and the ways in which one might seek to abide by the pledge. We will also probably engage in tangental rants, witty digressions and bizarre, semi-related antics. Hopefully, in the end, we will have a plethora of possible ways in which each of our businesses can positively impact the environment, or at least impact it less negatively.

This series, due to its daunting scope, will be a collabrative effort between all of us at postgreen (Chad and Nic). We will work together to fashion an educational, entertaining expansion of the pledge’s concepts. Well, maybe that is promising a bit much. Let’s say we will attempt to at least slog through all thirty promises and come out with one or two good ideas amidst the inevitable wanderings of my prose and Chad’s eclectic green geekdom.

Hopefully the input of our wonderful readers will fill the gaps in our efforts. We are all counting on you.

We are currently discussing the shape and direction of this blog, and this has turned out to be a great excuse for my inborn laziness. I feel no compunction to write posts that may be contrary to the eventual blogging strategy we develop, and therefore, I have resorted to silence during the planning process. Fortunately, the “Look at This” section seems likely to be an ongoing feature so you will not have to do without the benefit of my wanderings and wittisisms during our time of blog meditation. So while we argue the various blog focus options look at this . . .

• While my collection of plastic milk crate and cinder block furniture may or may not qualify, there are definitely some stylish recycled/reused products out there.
• You have no doubt heard the common warning about comparing apples to oranges unless of course you are the average real estate appraiser.
• Sub-Arctic Ice Volcanoes is not just the name of my new indy rock band, it is also the central arguement of yet another attempt to debunk global warming.
• Flip flops - You’ve put your feet in them. Now, put your feet on them.
• While researching that second link I left my apples and oranges out on the counter a little too long. Sure enough, the fruit flies showed up. Fortunately, I now have a solution for those pesky invaders.
• There has been a lot of talk around the office about getting some postgreen bikes. Could this be the answer?

Check out our first try at a new video format for our press releases. This is an attempt to communicate our press releases in a format that is both more informational and entertaining. Using YouTube means that our releases are free and when we have major releases, we can still use PRWeb to post a standard text release with the video attached. We hope you like it and go easy on us in the comments as it’s a work in progress.

Postgreen Hires Nic Darling to Head up Marketing and PR Operations

Philadelphia, PA June 26th, 2008

Contact:
Chad Ludeman, President
Postgreen
215.739.1578
http://www.postgreen.com

###

Today marks my first day as an employee of postgreen, and Chad has made an effort to keep me too busy to write this post. Even now he is distracting me with ideas about the 100k House line. Dammit Chad, I’m trying to tell people about all the cool stuff I found on the Internet this week! Jeez.

Try to ignore him and look at this . . .

• Now I dislike a wet newspaper as much as the next guy, but what is one to do with all that pesky plastic protecting our informative black and white from the summer storms. Well, now you can have your unsmeared ink and a gift for the special person in your life.
• Yes these ideas are crazy . . . crazy like a fox . . . if that fox were keen on saving the world from an impending climate disaster.
• George Carlin is dead, but his thoughts on meat leave on. Thanks interweb.
• And my fiancee said those pizza boxes I was saving in the basement wouldn’t be good for anything. Hello pepperoni scented recliner. That’ll teach her to question my absurd hoarding.

A little brief today, but what can I say. I need a post work beverage and a little down time.