The Daily Perk: The Holidays: A Time to Save?

Before you get the wrong idea, I'm not talking about money here; at least not directly. I'm talking about energy. Genesys Conferencing, a global provider of multimedia conferencing technology, recently did a study of over 15,000 customers to see if companies try to maximize energy savings while employees are away over the holidays. Not surprisingly, most do not.

Over half of the respondants said that their companies normally support some kind of green initiative in the workplace. And although more than 60 percent of employees plan on extending their alotted holiday time-off, less than one-third of the responding companies have a special holiday plan to take advantage of empty offices.

Would one of these plans make sense for your company? You bet. When it comes to saving energy, every bit counts. To enact such a plan, Genesys offers their "Five Top Tips for a Greener Holiday Workplace." Some of their tips make sense, like turning off lights and unplugging dormant office equipment. Others are a little reaching. (Tip four - "Relax dress codes to save on laundry and dry cleaning." I'm sorry, do we not wash our casual clothes, too?) But one of their tips, however promotional, is insightful.

Genesys says, "Avoid unnecessary travel – the #1 polluter – by providing virtual meeting capabilities for people working from home during their vacation." That sounds good to me. Imagine if you could work from home during the holidays, say from December 15 through January 15. No commute means more money for gifts, more time at home and less time on icy roads. My ony real beef with the notion, is that it blurs the line between work and home. But with the way we're all wired to each other these days, wasn't that line blurred long ago?

For corporate globetrotters, Genesys also offers a slick new tool to show how their software can help clients save big-bucks and the planet at the same time. The Genesys Cost Calculater cleverly figures savings not only in dollars and cents, but also in terms of hours and, most cleverly, carbon emmissions.

Check it out here.