We recently had sight of the annual Carbon reporting provided to a business from a London based carbon consultant, and very pretty it was too, with lots of tables, graphs and images.
When that business manager told us the annual charge however, we nearly fell off our chairs. Well north of £5k. Admittedly, some on-line staff training was included in the subscription, but in no way did the deliverable justify the expense.
If you’re paying multiple £thousands a year for carbon reporting, ask yourself this:
- Has the provider ever been to visit the business premises?
- Does the carbon reduction plan recommend actions that are specific to the business, quantifiable and time-bound, or are they generic?
- Does the reporting provide a year-on-year carbon reduction trajectory?
- Is this a useful management tool?
- Does the provider offer the technical support, wisdom and experience to help you implement carbon reduction actions?
- Is the reporting compliant with any recognised standards?
When something like Carbon Reporting is new to a business, it’s difficult to know what represents good value, and the risk is paying far too much.
Whether you’re wanting to start on your carbon reduction journey, or are looking to review your current service, it’s well worth shopping around, and speaking to any prospective advisor with these questions in mind.