Crucial factors for improving the ISO 14001 environmental management system

The practice of using environmental management systems (EMS) ISO 14001 at the organisational level indicates that the efficacy of such solutions depends on many factors, both endogenous and exogenous in nature. This article aims to identify the fac- tors that determine the opportunities for the improvement of EMS in organisations, the analysis of the relationship between the factors and the classification of the factors due to their role in the system improvement. The structural analysis was used to classify and identify the key factors and then to categorize these factors into five groups. Finally, the role of these key factors in improving environmental management systems was exam- ined. Based on the findings, guidelines can be offered to both scholars and practitioners regarding the factors crucial for the improvement of the EMS. Aiming to add value to the existing literature, the structural analysis was adapted to classification and identification of the key factors. From the point of view of practitioners, it seems to be very profitable to concentrate on the crucial factors during the process of EMS improvement

Effectiveness and Benefits of the Eco-Management and Audit Scheme: Evidence from Polish Organisations

Climate change and environmental pollution are considered to be among the main challenges faced by the modern world. The growth of environmental awareness and the adoption of a pro-environmental approach are considered to be the key megatrends with the greatest impact on the global economy in the upcoming years. According to Eurobarometer, EU citizens are particularly aware of the importance of protecting the environment. Although the negative environmental impact of European industry has improved over the past decades, EU citizens believe that there is further scope in terms of helping companies transition towards adopting more sustainable models. One of the factors contributing to the reduction in negative environmental impact is the participation of enterprises in voluntary programs such as the Environmental Management System (EMS), according to ISO 14001, or the Eco-management and Audit Scheme (EMAS). The whole population of Polish companies registered under the EMAS was included in the study and although the sample size was small, it was a full study, and for that reason allows for the generalisation and conclusion regarding the whole population of EMAS-registered companies in Poland. The results of the study conducted on EMAS-registered organisations in Poland in 2015 suggest that the average effectiveness of the EMAS observed between 2007 and 2014 was 66.4%. The aim of this study was to review the changes in EMAS effectiveness and benefits obtained by participating organisations after five years. The results indicate that the average effectiveness during the period of 2015–2020 increased to 79.1%; nevertheless, registered organisations recognise fewer benefits for participation in the scheme. The study has shown that as EMAS matures in organisations, it becomes more effective. It influences a lot of factors, such as environmental awareness and management commitment, the use of SRDs (including BEMPs), environmental performance indicators for specific sectors, the criteria for the excellence of assessing the level of environmental performance, and the skilful use of indicators in organisations

Naujos valdymo sistemos kaip instrumentai įgyvendinant darnios plėtros koncepciją organizaciniu lygmeniu

Diversity of contemporary management concepts, short life duration of some of them, fashion of implementing popular solutions, indiscriminate adoption of management systems in companies simultaneously with a long period of waiting for positive effects of implemented changes and decreasing involvement of employees lead to the situation in which many companies still face unresolved dilemma of choosing the right strategy of acting that ensures sustainable development of a unit. Therefore, new solutions should be treated as one of the elements of organization improvement, not as an objective as such, and as the way of solving the existing problems. One of the ways of realizing sustainable development principles at the level of an organizational unit is implementation of normalized systems elaborated by International Organization for Standardization (ISO). The article presents a proposal of the way of implementing sustainable development concept at organizational level using three systems: quality, environmental, occupational health and safety managemen

New management systems as an instrument of implementation sustainable development concept at organizational level / Naujos valdymo sistemos kaip instrumentai įgyvendinant darnios plėtros koncepciją organizaciniu lygmeniu

Diversity of contemporary management concepts, short life duration of some of them, fashion of implementing popular solutions, indiscriminate adoption of management systems in companies simultaneously with a long period of waiting for positive effects of implemented changes and decreasing involvement of employees lead to the situation in which many companies still face unresolved dilemma of choosing the right strategy of acting that ensures sustainable development of a unit. Therefore, new solutions should be treated as one of the elements of organization improvement, not as an objective as such, and as the way of solving the existing problems. One of the ways of realizing sustainable development principles at the level of an organizational unit is implementation of normalized systems elaborated by International Organization for Standardization (ISO). The article presents a proposal of the way of implementing sustainable development concept at organizational level using three systems: quality, environmental, occupational health and safety management. Santrauka Šiuolaikinių valdymo koncepcijų įvairovė ir jų trumpalaikiškumas (kai kurių), polinkis įgyvendinti populiarius sprendimus, beatodairiškas valdymo sistemų diegimas ilgai laukiant teigiamų pokyčių, taip pat darbuotoju dalyvavimo, priimant sprendimus, mažinimas sukuria situaciją, kai daugelis bendrovių vis dar susiduria su neišspręsta dilema - pasirinkti tinkama strategiją darniam organizacijos vystymuisi užtikrinti. Todėl nauji sprendimai turėtų būti traktuojami kaip organizacijos tobulinimo elementai, o ne kaip panacėja esamoms problemoms išspręsti. Vienas darnaus vystymosi principų įgyvendinimo būdų ‐ diegti standartizuotas sistemas, parengtas Tarptautines standartizacijos organizacijos (ISO) įmonėse. Straipsnyje siūloma darnaus vystymosi koncepcija organizacijos lygmeniu įgyvendinti naudojant tris valdymo sistemas: kokybės, aplinkos apsaugos, darbuotojų saugos ir sveikatos valdymo. First published online: 09 Jun 2011 Reikšminiai žodžiai: darnus vystymasis, aplinkos valdymas, kokybės valdymas, saugos valdyma

The influence of information about food safety management system on purchase decisions of individual consumers Wpływ informacji o systemie zapewnienia bezpieczeństwa żywności na decyzje nabywcze konsumentów indywidualnych

The article presents the result of research on the influence of information about food safety management system on purchase decisions of consumers

LCA as an element in environmental management systems—comparison of conditions in selected organisations in Poland, Sweden and Germany. Part 2: Results of survey research

Purpose In this two-part paper (Background and Initial Assumptions (Part 1) and Results of Survey Research (Part 2)), we present surveys whose main objective is to determine, whether and to what extent the life cycle assessment (LCA) technique is used for the identification and assessment of environmental aspects in environmental management systems (EMS) and whether there are any differences in this respect between the companies and countries analysed.Methods The survey research was carried out using the computer assisted self-administered interviewing (CASI) method among selected Polish, German and Swedish organisations which implement EMS in accordance with the requirements of ISO 14001 and/or the EMAS regulation.Results The organisations investigated, regardless of their country, are dominated by qualitative and semi-quantitative techniques of assessment and identification of environmental aspects. LCA was used sporadically, although some differences can be observed between the countries analysed.Conclusions The environmental managers accustomed to traditional qualitative and semi-quantitative solutions, have not been given preparation to enable them to understand and adopt the different approaches such as LCA. On the other hand, representatives of the organisations investigated declared that they were ready to accept an even longer timescale for the identification and assessment processes relating to environmental aspects, which represents a potential opportunity for LCA. The more precise understanding and definition of environmental problems that are precisely defined in LCA would represent a novelty for environmental managers. In practice, environmental problems are defined in a general sense and rather ambiguously, as this level of detail is sufficient in the context of qualitative and semi-quantitative techniques commonly used for the identification and assessment of environmental aspects

LCA as an element in environmental management systems—comparison of conditions in selected organizations in Poland, Sweden and Germany. Part 1: Background and initial assumptions

Purpose In this two-part paper (Background and Initial Assumptions (part 1) and Results of Survey Research (part 2)), we present surveys whose main objective is to determine whether, and to what extent, the life cycle assessment (LCA) technique is used for the identification and assessment of environmental aspects in environmental management systems (EMS) and whether there are any differences in this respect between the companies and countries analysed.Methods The survey research was carried out using the computer assisted self-administered interviewing method among selected Polish, German and Swedish organisations which implement EMS in accordance with the requirements of ISO 14001 and/or the EMAS regulation.Results The organisations investigated, regardless of their country, are dominated by qualitative and semi-quantitative techniques of assessment and identification of environmental aspects. LCA was used sporadically, although some differences can be observed between the countries analysed.Conclusions The environmental managers accustomed to traditional qualitative and semi-quantitative solutions have not been given preparation to enable them to understand and adopt different approaches such as LCA. On the other hand, representatives of the organisations investigated declared that they were ready to accept an even longer timescale for the identification and assessment processes relating to environmental aspects, which represents a potential opportunity for LCA. The more precise understanding and definition of environmental problems that are precisely defined in LCA would represent a novelty for environmental managers. In practice, environmental problems are defined in a general sense and rather ambiguously, as this level of detail is sufficient in the context of qualitative and semi-quantitative techniques commonly used for the identification and assessment of environmental aspects