How do you communicate the complex topic of sustainable development to your staff, so they can be your ambassadors in this area?
For Swire Properties ("SPL"), the answer is "Making Swire Places" – a brand-new staff engagement programme.
In 2016, SPL launched its Sustainable Development 2030 Strategy, with the vision of being a global leader in its industry by 2030. And from the get-go, the company realised that the key to making this vision a reality was staff empowerment.
Events and Project Manager Evan Li, who helped create Making Swire Places, says: "We needed a fun way to engage our staff and let them live and breathe our vision. Instead of ‘preaching' to our colleagues, we created an interactive workshop where they could create their ideal community to live and work, a programme that combines two of our strategy's key pillars, 'Places' and ‘People'."
Departmental teams from across SPL spent a Friday afternoon debating how to create the optimal sustainable community. Each team was provided with a special toolkit to design their ideal neighbourhood – including an enormous paper map, coloured pencils and stickers of buildings, people and greenery. Then, once the master plans were completed, they went through a peer-review process, before being judged by a special panel.
In the end, it came down to just three teams: Taikoo Shing Management Limited ("TSML"), Swire Hotels and SPL Finance. TSML's "Swire Properties environmental-engineered downtown" (SPeed) was the ultimate victor, with judges agreeing that the plan showcased "visionary planning that supports long-term place-keeping". The team created a well-balanced, well-planned community that could be used as a model for future sustainable places. Liveability, connectivity, renewable energy and environmental protection were prominently featured.
As a testament to the effectiveness of the workshop, the winning team says: "Through this experience, we've realised that if we don't take the time to fully understand sustainable development and broaden our knowledge on this subject, we will only continue to waste resources and harm our environment. We think it's crucial to practise sustainable development."
Visit www.sd2030.com/places for more details.
For Swire Properties ("SPL"), the answer is "Making Swire Places" – a brand-new staff engagement programme.
In 2016, SPL launched its Sustainable Development 2030 Strategy, with the vision of being a global leader in its industry by 2030. And from the get-go, the company realised that the key to making this vision a reality was staff empowerment.
Events and Project Manager Evan Li, who helped create Making Swire Places, says: "We needed a fun way to engage our staff and let them live and breathe our vision. Instead of ‘preaching' to our colleagues, we created an interactive workshop where they could create their ideal community to live and work, a programme that combines two of our strategy's key pillars, 'Places' and ‘People'."
Departmental teams from across SPL spent a Friday afternoon debating how to create the optimal sustainable community. Each team was provided with a special toolkit to design their ideal neighbourhood – including an enormous paper map, coloured pencils and stickers of buildings, people and greenery. Then, once the master plans were completed, they went through a peer-review process, before being judged by a special panel.
In the end, it came down to just three teams: Taikoo Shing Management Limited ("TSML"), Swire Hotels and SPL Finance. TSML's "Swire Properties environmental-engineered downtown" (SPeed) was the ultimate victor, with judges agreeing that the plan showcased "visionary planning that supports long-term place-keeping". The team created a well-balanced, well-planned community that could be used as a model for future sustainable places. Liveability, connectivity, renewable energy and environmental protection were prominently featured.
As a testament to the effectiveness of the workshop, the winning team says: "Through this experience, we've realised that if we don't take the time to fully understand sustainable development and broaden our knowledge on this subject, we will only continue to waste resources and harm our environment. We think it's crucial to practise sustainable development."
Visit www.sd2030.com/places for more details.
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