Cisco’s ISO 14001 Environmental Management Systems (EMS) provide a set of processes and practices that enable us to reduce environmental impacts and increase operating efficiency. Through a continuous cycle of planning, implementing, reviewing, and improving the processes, EMS influences all aspects of Cisco’s operations, products, and services, including compliance with environmental requirements and ongoing improvements to environmental business performance.
The EMS framework is used at each Cisco ISO 14001-certified site to identify, prioritize, and manage the pertinent environmental concern in that region. For FY08, our management systems were integrated and aligned with a number of key environmental concerns promoted by Cisco operations, including energy and carbon-emission management, green supply chain management, waste reduction, and recycling.
ISO 14001 certification is an internationally accepted standard for environmental management systems. To date, Cisco has achieved ISO 14001 certification in 20 sites through independent, third-party auditors, and we expect to include 21 sites by the end of CY08. These sites represent approximately 70 percent of Cisco’s employee population. We anticipate that our facility in Vimercate, Italy, will be added to the list of certified sites in December 2008.
Progress to Date
In FY08 Cisco continued to develop a robust and scalable EMS program that demonstrates our commitment to the environment, local communities, and our customers. This year’s focus has been on improving processes and aligning corporate-level initiatives to support a global, synchronized, and efficiently managed system.
- Virtual internal audits: In CY08, approximately 50 percent of internal audits are being conducted virtually—that is, from a remote location. This represents a 20 percent increase in virtual internal audits. By conducting audits remotely, we decrease our carbon footprint from travel, save travel costs, and boost employee productivity.
- Adoption of EMS: Throughout the year, various functional groups and business units have been integrating sustainable performance targets into their business goals and making these activities part of the day-to-day process.
- Dashboards: Cisco has put in place two custom tracking systems called Eco-Dashboard and Environmental Aspect Team Dashboard. The dashboards have increased employee and management awareness of environmental goals by proactively following the progress of more than 40 environmental teams around the globe.
- Environmental newsletter: Our quarterly environmental management newsletter informs employees about environmental programs and enables business units to share best practices and collaborate on cross-functional environmental initiatives.
Cisco ISO 14001 Certified Site Locations
Making Best Practices Even Better
In the process of auditing Cisco sites for ISO 14001 certification, implementation teams are often able to introduce best practices that improve the company’s environmental performance in innovative ways. Here are two recycling examples.
In Bangalore, India, the implementation team entered into a unique partnership with a certified waste hauler and a local charity. The waste management company collects paper-based waste from all of Cisco’s Bangalore offices and delivers it to the Samarthanam Trust for the Disabled, which provides education and housing for visually, physically, and economically challenged residents. Students at the Samarthanam Trust use the paper to make Braille notebooks, and any material left over is recycled by the trust for additional income. Cisco Bangalore no longer sends any paper-based waste to the landfill.
In Richardson, Texas, the ISO 14001 implementation team developed an interactive spreadsheet that provides comprehensive status information on the recycling program’s objectives, targets, and deliverables. This tool was so successful that it is now being deployed to all the other Cisco implementation teams.
