I recently opened a LinkedIn discussion inquiring about what goes into a good "green" case study. My intention was to elicit input concerning good areas of discussion for future GCIO phone calls and meetings - such as "Creating a Sustainability Task Force" or "Calculating Carbon Offsets". However as answers started coming in I soon realized I should have phrased my question differently. My original intent now only a memory, the virtual conversation consisted of a soap box style series of complaints as to the content of case studies in the green space in general.
Really the complaints were not directly related to green business at all, but more a standard complaint regarding case studies in this industry in general (with the occasional *gasp* greenwashing buzzword thrown in for effect). Case studies never tell the bad part of the story. Case studies are used as a marketing vehicle and therefore are tainted. Case studies would be so much better if they were failure stories, as we learn more from our failures then our successes.
I can not argue with any of these complaints. Even if I could argue against them, having heard them for over twenty years now I no longer feel much like arguing about it. It's true that most case studies today are typically only viewed through rose-colored glasses. And as humans we tend to be less excited by the good stuff then we are the bad. It's much more fun to learn about what a company did wrong, then to learn what they did right. Still, if I had any argument I would say it's important to learn both - for it's the comparison of the two that really give us the best information.
In twenty years of doing market research I have learned a few things about gathering information on cases. It is possible to get the ugly along with the good, in fact it's easier than you might think. It's human nature to want to gripe about our misgivings almost as much as we like to brag about our fortunes. What we don't want to do is gripe about our misgivings to someone that won't understand or will not be, at least somewhat, sympathetic to our plight. Given this, it's unrealistic to think that companies will want to share their horror stories to the unwashed masses in written published form.
The only way to really get the good dirt (that is the ugly truth behind the rose-colored case studies) is in person communication and collaboration. Getting together with peers in a low-pressure setting and sharing war stories. There's nothing wrong with reading the happy case study stories over coffee on a Sunday morning but don't confuse these stories with reality - to get the full story you need to do your own investigating.
This is why, even in times of travel limitations and budget cuts, it's so important to find a way to meet with industry peers and develop the relationships that will foster sharing. In all my years of looking at projects there is one thing that always spelled the difference between success and failure: communication.
So here comes the commercial aspect of today's blog... our GCIO meetings are specifically designed to be networking think tanks - industry peers with different viewpoints and different experiences coming together to share their war stories. Meet the faces behind the case studies, network with these companies and share your information. Together it is possible to learn from our successes and our failures and to really gain insider knowledge that will help breed more successful sustainability endeavors.
Our next meeting will be held in San Antonio, TX on Thursday, September 17th. You can find a full agenda at this link: http://www.gcio.org/agenda.html
I hope you can join us.
