Thanks to this analysis, you know how your project (its products and processes) affects all of the possible aspects like: soil, air, water, particular flora and fauna, energy, resources, people, society, and communities. The study of the project’s impact on the economy focuses on maximizing benefits for as many stakeholders as possible.
Therefore, you will be able to reduce the project costs, including, for example, the cost of resource consumption and energy. Thus, you will improve the investment profitability. You will also gain additional benefits, value, and new sources of competitive advantage. You will motivate your team better, gain the support of local communities for your activities, and improve your company’s reputation.
The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, valid until 2030, indicate the most significant challenges the world is facing. Many connections and combinations are possible between the 17 goals and the 169 tasks resulting from these goals in any project. It is often difficult for Project Managers to incorporate them efficiently and transparently to plan a project and its products.
GPM Standard P5 is a bridge between projects and sustainable development. It will help you combine people, the environment, and profit with your project’s processes and products. It will enable you to understand their impact and make a positive contribution to achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.
The Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) is a tool that enables organizations to operate transparently. It allows for the involvement of investors, employees, and other stakeholders.
The GRI report provides information on the organization’s economic, environmental, and social impacts. It includes both the impact of current operational activities as well as conducted projects and programs.
Implementing the P5 Standard in your organization results in a faster and more convenient manner of preparation of the data needed for GRI, UNGC or other sustainable development reports. GPM’s Standard provides a measurable framework for portfolios, programs, and projects that are important for reporting in this regard.
The project has a different impact on the people directly involved in it, local communities, and society. Responsible communication involves informing project stakeholders in a transparent way, inside and outside the organization, about the expected project outcomes and project processes.
Using responsible communication increases the positive perception of the project in your organization and outside of it. You will also strengthen the reputation of your personal brand as well as your team’s brand. At the same time, you will improve the understanding, support, and involvement of project stakeholders in your activities.
Where do the resources used in the project come from? Were they sourced or produced under fair, ethical conditions? Are they not based on the use of child labor? How are the manufactured products disposed of after their useful life? What is the lifetime of the products in the project?
You will gain the competence to comprehensively evaluate the project and its impact on the environment and communities, from source and resource generation to product and waste disposal.
The conducted projects contribute to the development of people within the organization. The level of awareness and competence of Project Managers and members of project teams grows every year.
Thanks to the use of tools and solutions developed by GPM, you will learn how to integrate project activities with your organization’s sustainable development. You will assess their impact on the company’s strategy. You will increase the awareness among team members about the project’s environmental, social, and economic impact.
The project affects the environment, both through the manufactured products and the project management processes. It is common practice to assess the environmental impact of a project selectively. Meanwhile, the resource consumption analysis should consider the entire product life cycle. For example, when manufacturing laptops, it would be advisable to assess toxic chemicals’ effects on product durability and serviceability.
Sustainable resource management will enable you to reduce the product life cycle costs (production, distribution, operation, and disposal). You will reduce the emission of harmful substances to the environment (e.g., CO2), and you will also increase the use of renewable resources. You will also strive for the broadest possible use of recycled resources in your project.
It is possible to minimize the consumption of raw materials and the amount of waste, emissions, and energy loss through a regenerative economic system. It consists of creating a closed loop of processes that allows you to minimize the amount of production waste, thanks to its use as raw materials in other processes. The official goal of the European Union is to convert to a circular economy model.
GPM training and certification will enable you to acquire the competencies necessary to reduce resource consumption. You will know how to minimize waste production and increase waste recycling (including energy and water). You will also learn to evaluate the design and its environmental impact throughout the product life cycle.