Step 1.3 TEST team

How to mobilize the internal skills of a company and plan for implementing TEST.

Rationale

The implementation of an initiative like TEST requires the full engagement of a company’s internal team – the TEST team. This team will be a resource pool that will drive the process and interface with external consultants and service providers to integrate resource efficiency in processes and operations. 

The TEST team should be led by a motivated leader who can inform decision-makers, and should include key staff members with relevant knowledge and perspectives on the different business functional units. The section below shows examples of suitable TEST team members. The TEST team will be responsible for compiling process data, as well as for developing, implementing and evaluating the TEST action plan. The motivation of the TEST team is crucial: experience shows that better results can be achieved when top management sets up an internal incentive scheme to reward staff for playing an active role in TEST implementation.

The training of the TEST team and a broader awareness program targeting workers and employees can be planned in several short sessions. Each session is interspersed with practical work in the company for data collection and analysis. Training of internal teams is important to strengthen capacities and upgrade a company’s skills in the fields of resource efficiency and integrated environmental management for continuous improvement.