What’s up at GE 99?

CSRD is the EU’s new directive on mandatory sustainability reporting for companies above a certain size (250 employees and/or certain financial turnover). ESRS is the standard for this mandatory sustainability report. In the future, a sustainability report must be part of the financial report and reviewed by an auditor.

I took a course in perhaps the most important part of CSRD, namely the process known as “Double Materiality”. A good course at Bonnier with experienced and pedagogical teachers.

I look forward to supporting more companies with sustainability reporting in the future.

Since 2019, GE99 has add a new service to our business: External project evaluation or “follow-up research” as it is sometimes called. It is about EU-funded projects having an external follower of the project who can support the project management, feedback lessons during the project period and remind about the long-term goals of the project.

These are often publicly run projects and therefore the accompanying researcher is procured in accordance with the Public Procurement Act. For me, there have been a total of five projects within the ERDF (European Regional Development Fund) that dealt with broadband and digitization, energy collaboration, a technology accelerator and business support during the pandemic. Right now I am following three projects, some of which will be completed in 2023. The follow-up researcher will report to the Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth on how the project succeeds in achieving the goals.

Being a follow-up researcher is a very fun assignment to work with. You get to know project teams with great drive, get to see new organizations from the inside and at the same time try to contribute with thoughts and lessons so that in the end our common society will be a little better and more sustainable than it is today.

GE99 celebrates five years with a little cake here and there in the near future.

When I started the company in 2014, I had no idea it could hold. Sure I hoped and sure enough I got mentors and tried to learn. But now, five years later, I am both surprised and grateful to be able to continue as an entrepreneur indefinitely for as long as I have the health and customers want.

Working with sustainability feels meaningful and fun. I always try to take it down to earth when I meet a new customer, a new management team or, for that matter, a sports association that is my latest customer. Sustainability is not complicated. If you are only willing to take responsibility for your business, there is just as much to do.

And the best part: Sustainability work is profitable! Both for the planet and for the business! Thanks to the Board, all mentors, consultants and office colleagues but mainly to all CUSTOMERS!

With the starting point from Karlskrona we can now on one charge take us either to Västervik, Jönköping, Halmstad or Malmö. With the new BMW i3, 250 km is a realistic range compared to my old i3 who took me about 100 km. The batteries has developed and it feels really good to drive to the customer without emitting a single gram of CO2. Want to know more about electric cars versus gasoline and diesel cars? See the movie (4.30) “How climate-smart is it to drive an electric car?” From Bil Sweden (Only in Swedish though 🙂

Thank You Anna at Blekinge Business Incubator (BBI) for the invitation to your workshop on sustainable future for BBI. I am impressed by the four BTH students’ drive in the issue and how they facilitate several workshops on the subject. The methodology is taken from BTH’s master’s program for Strategic Leadership for Sustainability, which attracts students from all over the world. In the picture we see Anna from BBI, Peter from New Zealand, Michael from Ghana, Tuba from Turkey and Sierra from the USA. Many thanks to all of you for valuable insights!

Thank You to my adepts Simon and Emil at Stumbly who nominated me for the Mentor of the Year at Nyföretagarcentrum Blekinge! It has been fun to act mentor to two such positive and driven young engineers and I have learned a lot during the journey. I wish You all the best and take good care of you! On the picture Jonas Bommeskär, Nyföretagarcentrum, and I. I am he with the diploma 🙂

Our climate footprint in Sweden is high. 2 tons more than the world citizen in average. And 6 tons more than we should have. So: we need to contribute all of us to reduce climate gases. Here is my contribution as a self employed consultant: I almost always drive an electric car but sometimes borrow a plug-in hybrid for longer trips. Sometimes I fly to Stockholm. For this kind of travelling that aren’t fossil free I buy climate compensation via zeromission.se. The money goes to planting trees and energy projects in developing countries. This is how I think: If I can do this, other companies could do the same thing.

certificate_16485076 (1)

The magazine Aktuell Hållbarhet interviewed me about the criteria of the Sustainability Act: “It is important that Swedish companies do not get higher burdens compared to other EU countries. But in this case, it is a light burden that can boost business competitiveness while contributing to a sustainable development.” Therefore, I can accept a higher requirement (250 employees) than the EU directive says (500 employees). The entire article can be found in Aktuell Hållbarhet No. 2 2018.

We have finally found a concept for SME companies (and associations) to develop their sustainability work in a simple way. Through our collaboration with ansvarsfullt.se we can offer both a digital tool and education who can make the customer feel safer to communicate CSR and sustainability to their stakeholders.

The education is a short course divided into two 4 hour sessions and includes part as “Create your sustainability profile”, “Be more safe to communicate sustainability” and “Show your sustainability work with ansvarsfullt.se”.

A license to ansvarsfullt.se is included for the first year. (Only in Swedish for now but hopefully in English in the future).

Contact GE99 for more information.

On the 3rd of October I participated in the course at the Swedish Institute for Standards (SIS): “To integrate ISO 26000 into your management system”. A valueable course where we looked upon ISO 9001, 14001 and how to integrate the standard for social responsibility ISO 26000 into management system for quality and environment. I have studied ISO 26000 at university and even worked with customers with it but I still missed this perspective. It is refreshing to educate yourself now and then – you may never stop being curious!

– I have been looking for a digital tool which supports me to work with sustainability, even as a small enterprise. Now I’ve found it:  ansvarsfullt.se

– The tool is so good that I am now an AMBASSADOR for ansvarsfullt.se in the Southern of Sweden.

– A small company can work with sustainability and produce a sustainability report that meet the demands from the large customers.

FoodTankers has published their second Sustainability Report, now according to GRI Standards, the international standard for sustainability reporting, used by over 90 % of large enterprises.

GE99 has supported FoodTankers to transform the report from GRI G4 to the new GRI Standards.

Read the report here

GE99:s summergift is a bag made of Fair Trade cotton. “If we don’t act now there will be more plastic than fish in the seas by the year 2050” (Håll Sverige Rent – a non profit organization to keep Sweden a clean country).

My tip: Put your tote bag in your car and bring it to the store. When you packed up the grocerys at home, put the bag nearby your car keys so you won’t forget it next time.

HAVE A REALLY NICE SUMMER

”Thank You Johnny Gylling for thorough examination of our impact on the Haulage Industry, writes Tove Winigers, Head of Public Affairs at The Swedish Association of Road Transport Companies at LinkedIn.”

”We are proud and pleased that our sustainability report on Fair Transport is ready! As the first professional organization we have let reviewing our CSR work. Three years in and a sector that initially showed skepticism now indicates that profitability has increased, perhaps due to a higher level of ambition with regard to road safety, climate and environment, and social responsibility?” 

– It has been a challenging but fun mission to produce the sustainability reporting of Fair Transport, says Johnny Gylling, GE99. One of my conclusions in the report is that Fair Transport has been positive for the industry, but needs to be developed so that hauliers themselves reported its sustainability work in the future. It would benefit all parties.

Read the report here (only in Swedish)

From today GE99 is a member of NetPort Energy cluster:

“We welcome companies and organizations who are passionate about innovation in energy and sustainability issues! Together we create an innovation environment with  developments of sustainable products and services.”

Read more about NetPort Energy cluster

Today I recieved my diploma for the GRI Certified Training Course for the transition from GRI G4 to GRI Standards (Sustainability Reporting). The course was held by Enact in Stockholm and is certified by GRI (Global Reporting Initiative). More than 90 percent of large enterprises are using GRI for sustainability reporting. It is so fun to add on to your knowledge and to forward it to companies and organisations!

Are there any kind companies…?

When Christmas is arriving we all become more kind. That is good! Dr Stefan Einhorn writes in his book The art of kindness: “To me, a kind person is an individual who lives with ethics in the heart”. Can there be such as kind companies? Yes, if all employees in a company are kind, then the whole company becomes kind, right?

A tips to spread kindness is when your company tells about your social responsibility. That will inspire more to do that extra thing.

I would want to thank all my clients for good cooperation during 2016 and thank’s to all I have been welcomed to visit and talk about sustainability.

GE99 continues to support EFI Fadder in Romania to help more children to a worthy life. Read more about EFI Fadder

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!

The Parliament accepted today the Government’s proposal to adopt the EU-directive on non-financial reporting for larger enterprises. Though several parties wanted to raise the bar from 250 employees to 500 (according to the directive) the Christian Democrats and the Center Party provided support to the red-green government.
I have met several large companies in the South-East of Sweden that has no sustainability reporting today. They often perform well but lacks transparency – they should tell more about their sustainability performance. It will be exciting to support these companies to start with the reporting process. Sustainability reporting is not a burden – it is a competitive advantage.

Last years environmental goal for GE99 was to improve our electronic purchases. The large mobile phone manufacturers have had great problems with labour conditions in China and Korea. We wanted to test a Fairphone and hope that the big ones would be affected by Fairphone.  You can read more about Fairphone here

GE99 have supported the transport company FoodTankers to produce their first Sustainability report according to GRI G4. It has been an exciting project! Download the report here: FoodTankers Sustainability Report 2015

To watch the presentation click here!

At the lecture I explained some challenges and opportunities from mainly the ICT industry on CSR and sustainability. For example how to deal with Human Rights issues like Child labour in the Supply chain. I also showed a local example from Karlskrona where Roxtec has recently started a partnership with Hand in Hand to support entrepreneurship, education and to fight poverty in one village in the south east part of India. This presentation is free to use for educational purpose.

Today we are publishing www.ge99.se