FEATURE NAME
THE BIGGER PICTURE
WORDS MEGAN TATUM
workforce, CSR can play a large part in whether the best candidates wish to join an organisation,” says David Smither, head of proposition and marketing at CMAC Group. “Providing an environment-focused policy with forward-thinking travel partners may help tip the scale in your favour.” As a result, “it is commonplace for ground transporta- tion usage and carbon emissions to find its way under the microscope.”
IN THE DRIVING How to factor
corporate social responsibility into a ground
transportation programme
F 32
OR WOMEN IN INDIA, life can be bleak. Violence is endemic, men dominate in positions of power, and women are often left in precarious, poorly paid roles. Only 25 per cent of women cur- rently work in the country, down from 35 per cent in 2005. But it’s here that Women on Wheels is hoping to make a difference. Established in 2008, the scheme trains young, marginalised women, many living in slums, to become profes- sional drivers, thanks to a partnership between
SEAT
the non-profit Azad Foundation and social enterprise Sakha Consulting Wings. Offer- ing chauffeur and premium cab services, the scheme provides invaluable employ- ment for women, and corporate travel for blue chips, diplomats and even royalty. “It’s a serious enterprise,” insists Sakha chief executive Meenu Vadera, who last year won the International Inspiration trophy at the Everywoman in Travel Awards. “We operate in a competitive market and we have to prove ourselves against the competition. When we sign up a client it’s because we offer them the solution they’re looking for at the right price. It just so happens that we change the lives of India’s women for the better while we are doing it.” Ground transport services with a con- science aren’t limited to India, though; a change in no small part due to demand from business travel clients. “For the modern
MARCH/APRIL 2019
Zero-emission fleets, charitable chauf- feurs and social enterprises, such as Women on Wheels, have emerged in response. Take London ethical car service, Green Tomato Cars. It claims to be the city’s largest zero-emission fleet, with 600 vehicles and a 98 per cent punctuality rate. It offsets unavoidable emissions by investing in an initiative distributing cookware in Uganda. Then there’s the Newcastle-based Co-wheels, which offers an eco-friendly al- ternative to business grey fleet mileage with its car club-style fleets. The social enterprise currently has 250 vehicles on business fleets in 37 towns, all the way from Aberdeen to Poole. “Our fleet has 44 per cent lower emissions per car than the average UK car, which is what makes up most organisations’ grey fleet,” explains managing director Richard Falconer.
PRICING PRESSURE Moving to sustainable alternatives isn’t always without its challenges, though. “The ground transport sector is a competitive sector, so car costs are a critical factor in the eventual price of the service,” points out John McCallion, chief executive at Ground- Scope. “Many companies are prepared to pay a slight premium to promote green car usage, but commercial pressure on ensuring prices are competitive does not make this an easy decision for everyone involved.” Nonetheless, it’s clearly a decision playing on the minds of travel teams. James Robey, head of sustainability at global consulting firm Capgemini, says in an effort to cut its onward travel emissions the company has partnered with sRide in India, a mobile app that promotes ridesharing, as well as installing charging points at its own sites to cater for an electric and hybrid fleet. “It was critical for us to address this travel challenge head on and promote smart, safe and sus- tainable travel,” says Robey. The payoff for these corporate clients lies
“beyond a nice story and few bylines”, says Vadera. Just ask the hundreds of Indian women now firmly in the driving seat. n How hotels tackle sustainability issues, p98-103
buyingbusinesstravel.com
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