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Once upon a time, there was a land where capitalism dominated and the only thing that mattered was how much money you could make. Though for many years businesses prospered, the public grew weary of their games and demanded something better. Now, we all want businesses to behave ethically whether that means responsible sourcing, fair pay, equal opportunities or proper waste management.
Setting up a company now needs a lot more thought than it used to. While profit is, naturally, your main goal, you will also need to think carefully about how your business will operate and what your priorities are. No business is ever going to be perfect, but there are a few things that you can do to make things better.
- Forming your business. To begin with, you will need to form your business. A company like Your Company Formations can help with this. You will need a company name, at least one director, a company address (your home will do but bare in mind this is public information) and shareholders. Though many business owners choose themselves as the sole director and shareholder, if you are trying to make a difference in the community with your business, you might want to open out the shares so that more people have a say in how your business operates. This can be a risky move, but if you are confident in the people who are most interested could be a great success.
- How to hire a diverse team. One of the main problems in business at the moment is a clear lack of diversity. In spite of all the evidence that suggests that diverse teams are more creative, more successful and more fun to work in, there are still lots of businesses in the UK mainly run by white men hiring people who look and sound a lot like them. This is a serious problem for everyone, including those white men who don’t know how much talent they are missing out on! To hire a diverse team, you need to think about the qualities you are looking for and then interview as many people as you can. If you are worried that you might have an unconscious bias (and being aware that this might be the case is a good thing), ask a recruitment agency to help with the interviews as well. This way, you can get a second opinion and make a better decision. Also, don’t think in terms of who will ‘fit’, think in terms of who will bring something new.
- An ethical operation. When you are running a business, it is easy to let your ethics relax a little but if you write a business policy to stick by, you should be able to stay strong in a turbulent market. For example, you should ensure fair wages for everyone, including fair trade with your suppliers. You should also ensure that you are well within the law with your practices from importing goods to fulfilling your duty of care in waste management. Running an ethical business is not just about what you can use to market your company, it is about sticking to your beliefs and doing what you think is right. Though you might assume that this will eat into your profits and cause you to struggle, you would be surprised how many consumers are willing to pay just a bit extra to clear their own consciences too. And this trend is only gaining momentum.
- Looking after the environment. High up on everyone’s list at the moment is the environment and plastic is in the headlines almost every day. This is such an issue at the moment that some UK supermarkets are pledging to reduce their plastic waste while more and more pressure is put on the government to deal with the issue by law. No matter what you do, every single business has some effect on the environment. This includes retailers, manufacturers, even small businesses consisting of just one person with a laptop are having an effect. There are plenty of ways to make your business greener: if you can use renewable energy, recycle as much as possible and reduce the amount of waste you produce, you will be off to a good start.
The world is finally sitting up and listening to the ethical concerns that many have had with business for decades if not centuries. Now is one of the best times to set up a company that will do things a little differently and not only make a profit, but make a significant and positive change too.
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