TheGreenSuits.com, official website for Green Careers Book ‘Tailoring the Green Suit’ is Relaunched

I am pleased to announce that our redesign of TheGreenSuits.com–the official website for Tailoring the Green Suit: Empowering Yourself for an Executive Career in the New Green Economy–is complete. And the new site is up-and-running.

Check it out!

Let That Green Lawn Turn Brown!

Cross-posted from The Green Suits:

In my book, Tailoring the Green Suit: Empowering Yourself for an Executive Career in the New Green Economy, I offer The Green Suit–the intrepid green business executive–suggestions for extending his or her “sphere of influence” well beyond the company gate.

And one meaningful, if not entirely provocative, way of showing your commitment to green is to let your lawn turn brown.

Here in the suburbs of Washington, D.C. we have two seasons: winter and August. And “climatological August” begins around the Memorial Day weekend, when suddenly, daytime temperatures often exceed 90 degrees.

The Washington D.C. suburbs are affluent, home to constellations of well-tended subdivisions. Mornings begin with the sound of irrigation heads spraying millions of gallons of water onto (our) rich green lawns. And those lawns are pretty; for sure, they remain an indelible symbol of The American Dream.

But, those green lawns sprout at the expense of reduced groundwater and watershed capacity. A sudden string of 90-plus degree days–and automatically-set irrigation systems–can severely deplete our water supplies.

That is why I urge The Green Suits to turn off the irrigation system, shut it down for the entire summer, and let their green lawns turn brown. Actually, brown lawns are not dead; during hot summer months lawns go into a resting phase when they extend their roots deeper into the soil to extract moisture. Irrigation might yield a pretty green lawn, but in summer months heavy watering actually weakens lawns, making them more susceptible to root stress, and insect damage from grubs and other nasties.

As The Green Suit with the brown lawn you may get some not-so-approving looks from your neighbors. But, you will be doing the planet a big favor by cutting down on your water usage. Furthermore, you will enjoy big reductions in your monthly water bills.

So this summer, go green by committing to a brown lawn. Get your household to buy in to a solid triple bottom line strategy: turn that green lawn brown to help the planet conserve water, aid people (by making water available to more residents of your community), and impact the pocket book with considerable utility cost-savings.

photo h/ts California Water Alert and Rutgers University.

Write an Op/Ed to Showcase Your ‘Green Business’ Leadership, Knowledge

Cross-posted from The Green Suits:

Last week was a busy one.

Not only was Tailoring the Green Suit finally published, but an op/ed I wrote for the Fredericksburg Va. Free Lance-Star newspaper also got “ink.”

In my book, I stress that the enterprising green business executive–The Green Suit–must continually make a public spectacle of him or herself. And one way to do that is to submit to newspapers in your area opinion pieces you have written, that demonstrate your leadership and familiarity with current green business issues.

My op/ed pointed out a serious problem in the community: while my state is on track to build a formidable green economy, the (Fredericksburg Va.) area where I live may not reap the benefits, because higher education, business, and local government here have not formed the necessary partnership or what I call “a three-legged table.” From the op/ed:

Virginia stands to become a global leader in the new green economy. Several of our academic institutions–Virginia Tech, the University of Virginia, the College of William & Mary, and (the historically African-American) Hampton University–are making great strides in researching and developing green tech. But in Greater Fredericksburg, we will not reap the green-business benefits other Virginia communities will enjoy unless we “build a three-legged table.”

It may be nearly impossible to publish an opinion piece in a major-metro daily newspaper like the New York Times or the Chicago Tribune. But dailies in smaller communities–that are hungry for timely and well-written content–may be inclined to run your piece.

Tailoring the Green Suit discusses this and other ways you may promote yourself as a knowledgeable green business leader. Order it today from Amazon.com.

Now at the Kindle Store: ‘Tailoring the Green Suit’

Cross-posted from The Green Suits:

Great news…AT LAST!

Just checked Amazon.com and–lo and behold–Tailoring the Green Suit: Empowering Yourself for an Executive Career in the New Green Economy is now available for your Kindle. To purchase, log on to Amazon.com’s Kindle Store.

‘Green Suits’ Book Cover Revealed

Cross-posted from The Green Suits:

Who likes waiting (for anything good)?

Many of you – excited about the impending release of Tailoring the Green Suit: Empowering Yourself for an Executive Career in the New Green Economy – have (emailed me/called me/sent me smoke signals/channeled me/social media messaged me) asking when the book would finally be available for purchase online and on booksellers’ shelves.

Unfortunately, I still do not have a definitive answer to that question. Schedules often take a backseat to quality assurance (as they should). And the production of this book has taken a bit longer than originally planned.

However, we are working aggressively to stay on track for a late March 2010 release. And, I think we will make it.

Meantime, is anybody game for a little show and share?

(Me! Me! Me! PICK ME!)

It is with great pride and excitement that at last we are able to reveal the book’s cover design. Check it out:

I would be remiss if I did not recognize the love of my life, my wife Marsha, for her extensive involvement in the cover design project. We think that the final result looks great and hope that you like it, too.

So the final countdown to book release begins. And now I ask:

Are you ready to tailor your Green Suit?

Book cover ©2010, Dan Smolen.

Are Green MBAs Ready for Green Business?

Cross-posted from The Green Suits:

For several years, I have written about the critical importance of green business training and education.

The C-Level’s demand for well-trained and properly educated green business executives is urgent. More companies are seeking talent that can ably manage the triple-bottom-line (people, planet, profits).

But are the institutions awarding so-called Green MBAs yielding such well-prepared talent? Ford Motor Company’s manager of social sustainability, David Berdish, is not convinced that they are.

In his post for GreenBiz.com, Berdish writes that:

Business schools are very good at asking students the hard questions – for example, how would marketing, IT, and operational functions work together to reduce a company’s energy consumption.

Additionally, (we are) not so good at asking students what the questions should be, in the first place, or how the systems within or outside a business support or conflict with a company’s mission and goals.

In other words, according to Berdish, business schools are highly capable at posing theoretical questions. Hoever, they are not as well-equipped at exploring the dynamic real-world complexities of sustainability, and more troubling, are not immune to “greenwashing.”

Berdish believes that business schools need to toss the “business as usual” mindset and adopt a style of instruction that more-fully prepares students for the complex set of challenges they will face when balancing the triple-bottom-line.