5 Steps to Empower Subcontractors for LEED Success

The built environment is the bedrock of thriving communities.

It may also be their most potent liability, with enormous climate and environmental repercussions. This is why governments, regulators, activists, communities and, increasingly, construction companies are taking notice and adapting their approaches accordingly. One Deloitte analysis notes: “The engineering and construction (E&C) industry has noticed that many customers are becoming sustainability-conscious and placing greater pressure on developers to lower the carbon footprint of new builds.”

At the same time, Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED), a voluntary rating and certification system aimed at increasing the environmental and health performance of buildings’ sites, structures and neighborhoods, is evolving its standards and providing a framework for builders looking to meet the moment.

The Latest LEED Standards

LEED — the most widely used green building rating system — provides a framework for creating and certifying healthy, efficient and cost-saving green buildings. Developed by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), LEED standards have been applied to 197,000 building projects globally, reaching 186 countries and territories.

The latest version of these standards, LEED v5, is updating the global benchmark to align with the Paris Climate Accord’s 2030 and 2050 targets while addressing issues of equity, health, ecosystems and resilience in the built environment. As USGBC explains, LEED v5 looks to:

• Decarbonize the building industry.
• Inspire and recognize adaptive and resilient built environments.
• Invest in human health and well-being.
• Achieve equitable outcomes for all stakeholders.
• Support flourishing ecosystems through regenerative development practices.

These outcomes are a boon for builders and the people residing in these communities. However, achieving LEED certification is contingent on more than just builders’ desire and readiness. It requires close collaboration with subcontractors, who perform between 70% and 90% of construction work on any given project.

This is often easier said than done.

Best Practices for Empowering Subcontractors for LEED Success

Ensuring the entire project team, especially subcontractors, is on the same page regarding the project’s sustainability goals is crucial to LEED certification.

Here are five best practices for empowering subcontractors for LEED success.

1. Communicate Why LEED Matters

Don’t assume everyone understands LEED standards or why they matter to your project. Instead, intentionally communicate why LEED matters and how certification will be achieved.

Conduct training early on to cover why we need LEED documentation, what documents look like, the important information to look for, where to find these documents and how to integrate compliant products into their wheelhouse.

Put differently, ensure subcontractors understand LEED requirements and how their work contributes to meeting those standards.

2. Provide the Right Resources

LEED standards and requirements are updated frequently enough that past training might not fully prepare subcontractors for LEED certification success on the next project.

Leaders can address this learning curve by ensuring subcontractors have updated resources and tools that track the certification process and document its completion. For example, they can proactively guide subcontractors to appropriate websites and resources, and work with them to clean up their submittals.

This forward-thinking partnership helps ensure that all efforts are informed by and aligned with the latest standards and best practices.

3. Leverage Safety Meetings for Ongoing Support & Reinforcement

While early-stage planning meetings are critical to achieving LEED certification, regular follow-ups will make the certification process more successful.

Leaders can incorporate this into daily safety meetings, providing support and reinforcement as needed. To make these as effective as possible, leaders can:

• Connect safety and sustainability, explaining how LEED standards and sustainable materials contribute to a safer work environment and meet LEED standards.
• Track and share progress, regularly updating the team on the project’s  LEED certification progress, including milestones reached or areas of improvement.
• Recognize contributors, highlighting individuals or teams who have made significant contributions toward achieving LEED compliance.
• Distribute resources, ensuring everyone has the information they need to perform their job successfully.
• Provide an open forum for subcontractors to voice concerns, ask questions, or offer suggestions for LEED and sustainability practices.
• Regardless of the format, regular communication touchpoints will help keep everyone informed and moving in the right direction together.

4. Identify Sustainability Champions

Only some members of a team will prioritize sustainability.

Identify team members who show a genuine interest in sustainability practices, whether through their suggestions, questions or the initiative they take on related tasks. Assigning these champions to be the point of contact will help ensure that sustainability goals are disseminated appropriately and objectives are achieved.

It’s important to give these champions the authority to make decisions in areas that align with LEED goals, ensuring they have the power to effect change and expect input or results from the other team members.

5. Continue Updating Your Knowledge Base

You can’t lead a team down a path you won’t follow yourself. That’s why construction executives must update their knowledge before prompting subcontractors to do the same.

To achieve this, regularly read industry publications, attend webinars and participate in conferences focused on sustainable construction and LEED certification.

Perhaps most importantly, leverage the USGBC’s educational programs to grow your knowledge and advance your professional potential. The agency’s education programs allow participants to earn digital badges that validate their knowledge and provide official recognition of accomplishments.

Participants earn knowledge-based green building badges by taking four courses from the USGBC’s expansive course catalog and passing the quiz for each course. These badges can be shared on social media and added to resumes, email signatures and promotional materials.

Certification Is a Collaborative Process

The built environment’s climate change implications are enormous, inspiring consumers and requiring builders to make their practices more sustainable. That’s why LEED standards are especially critical right now, requiring construction leaders to deploy an intentional and strategic approach to sustainability and compliance.

Empowering subcontractors with the resources, training and leadership needed to play their critical role in the compliance process is the necessary next step for builders, creating a bridge from sustainable building plans to final products that impact communities.

With expansive construction projects on the horizon, now is the right time to refine your processes and implement best practices that align every stakeholder with the environmental outcomes we all want.