There has been a lot of buzz in the press over the past year about the role that a commitment to corporate sustainability can play in helping businesses recruit and retain employees.  With so many people committed to doing what they can to combat global warming, conserve resources and protect our environment, it just makes sense that this would be the case.  It is not every day that you see direct results however, so I thought I'd share a couple of examples that have arisen recently.

A few months ago, I was down under in Australia at our Sydney office and had the opportunity to speak at a "Town Hall Meeting" about our corporate commitment to sustainability.  Sydney was one of our first offices to have a Green Team and already was developing a strong culture committed to green.  I mentioned during my talk that it was my hope that our approach to sustainability would be a reason that someone would want to come and work at CA.  So imagine my delight when a gentleman walked right up to me at the end of my remarks and said, "That is me."

Tim Dickenson had only been at CA Technologies three days when I happened to show up for that town hall meeting.  He is a Customer Success Architect on our Customer Success Team, a group that works with important accounts to ensure they are getting the most out of their CA technology and their relationship with the company.  As he explained it to me, "We proactively work to ensure that our customers have success, instead of being reactive and only getting involved if there is an issue."

I had the opportunity recently to loop back with Tim and discuss the role that sustainability played in his decision to come to CA.  As he explained it, "There were obviously a number of criteria that I took into consideration when looking for my next position.  I had a background with Nortel and some other major network providers and most recently was working with a startup company.  I was looking to move back to a larger organization.  I wanted to work with technology in a space that I was familiar with, and I wanted to work directly with customers.  But right up there near the top of my list was that I wanted to work at someplace I could be proud of.  I researched CA's sustainability program, looked into how the company had leveraged its core competency to launch CaecoSoftware, and read the sustainability report.  It definitely was a factor in my choosing CA and was a big check on the list of reasons to accept the job."

With Tim's background matching the type of qualified, experienced employees CA Technologies is looking to hire, this was music to my ears.  So, imagine my surprise when a couple of days later, I received this email from Joe Vaddakan, a Services Architect who teleworks (very green) for CA from his home in Scottsdale, Arizona.

"Let me just start out by saying how impressed I am with the green initiatives at CA. I have been here for approximately 3 days and change and all the global green events that CA supports is beyond amazing.  Prior to CA and apart from my day to day job, I founded and chaired Green initiatives at my previous employer General Dynamics.  Due to nature of the business it was a bit challenging.  However, we made it happen and now that I am here, what you have created is what I have dreamt of having at some point. Very impressive indeed and excellent blog."  

Thanks Joe.  By the way, I'm not sure what it is with the three day thing, but I think I am going to follow up with all new CA employees on their third day at the company! 

What are your experiences with the role of sustainability in attracting and retaining employees?  Do you have any stories to share?  Have you gone to a company with a commitment to green, or found yourself in one that couldn't care less?  What impact does that have on your desire to work there?