And why we chose an ISO certification, even as a fairly low-impact agency and how our new values are reflected in this.

It’s not hard to understand why companies producing physical products should work with sustainability and do what’s in their power to minimize their environmental footprint as much as possible.

When the talk comes to companies like ours, it can be a bit more difficult to see the point. But if you can’t see the point, maybe that’s because you are missing it. When you say the word sustainability, many people make the mistake of thinking only about the climate and the environment. It goes without saying that is extremely important, and a major part of working with sustainability – but one thing a lot aren’t automatically thinking about, are the people. Just as plants we need to thrive as people, and thriving people is very much part of working with sustainability. Just take the letters ESG – environment, social and governance. If you don’t consider all areas, working with sustainability will fail every time.

I will get back to how we work with the social aspect, and why this matters so much to us. But let’s start with the environment. Why do we work with it as a company producing digital assets?

First of all. It’s a valid question. On paper, our environmental impact is relatively small compared to many other industries. We don’t manufacture products, we don’t operate large transport fleets and we don’t run energy-intensive production lines. But sustainability isn’t only about numbers on a spreadsheet. It’s about responsibility, influence and the way we choose to do business.

As a creative content company working with global brands, our work travels far beyond our own offices. We help shape campaigns, messaging and content that reach people across markets and cultures. That gives us a platform and with that platform comes responsibility. We may not produce physical goods, but I think that most people have a quite clear understanding that cloud services, the use of AI, transportation of large files leaves a footprint. That’s why we believe sustainability matters, regardless of company size.

If you as a company hide behind your industry to avoid working with the environment, you are playing hide and seeks with morality.  We are not perfect, but by a long shot, we can be better in many areas, but we are doing what every company should do, we are trying to do better year for year. We won’t reach our goals in a few month, it takes time, and when we are nearing the finish line sometime in the future, we push it. 

From intention to action

Our decision to pursue ISO 14001 certification was a natural step in that journey. Not because we had to, but because we wanted structure, accountability and long-term impact. It’s easy to say you do something, but if you actually commit as a company and not just on slides and sales pitches but accept to be audited on your work it becomes more impactful.

ISO is not about ticking boxes or adding a badge to our website. It’s about building a solid framework that turns good intentions into concrete action. It does not come free, but the costs are investments in the future and not just expenses.

The certification process made us to take a closer look at our operations. We mapped processes, identified risks, documented procedures and set measurable targets. In short, we built a system that ensures sustainability is embedded in how we work, not treated as a side project.

Today, ISO 14001 is used as a management tool across all our offices. It guides local action plans, strengthens our data collection and anchors sustainability into daily decision-making. It has also helped increase internal engagement and awareness, making sustainability something we own together rather than something driven by a single team, and then we are back to the importance of people in this.

Dare to do more

One of our core values at Spring CC is Dare to do more. For us, sustainability is a perfect example of what that means in practice.

We could easily say: we’re just an digital company, our footprint is small, it doesn’t really matter. But honestly, what kind of company would we be if we believed in settling for “good enough”. Daring to do more means questioning our own habits, challenging the status quo and asking how we can improve, even when it’s not the easiest route. Because yes, it IS inconvenient at times, and changing routines does not come overnight.

That mindset is what led us to develop a climate transition plan with a clear target: to reduce our CO₂ emissions by at least 20% across Scope 1, 2 and 3 by the end of 2027. This ambition now sets the direction for our actions.

In practice, that has meant transitioning company cars to electric vehicles in Denmark, investing in solar panels at our Vietnam office and upgrading our facilities with energy-efficient air conditioning systems and LED lighting. These may sound like small steps for some, but together they make a real difference, and they signal our intent to keep pushing forward. By mapping our emissions, it has become clear to us where the major sinners are. The emission factors are different from country to country, and there is a major difference in how green the power we use is. Out biggest office is in Vietnam, and that is also the place where we use the most power for obvious reasons. When we then take into consideration that the power in Vietnam has a lower percentage of renewable energy it makes sense that we do more in Vietnam than in Denmark on that matter.  

Be the solution

Another value that drives our approach is Be the solution. Sustainability is complex. There are budget constraints, tight deadlines and competing priorities. But instead of seeing those as blockers, we see them as opportunities to find smarter ways of working.

But it also means, that when we see a challenge we look for a way to do something, and in Vietnam that has been investing in solar energy. Not just buying greener energy from the providers, but investing in getting our electricity from panels on the roof of our office building. Being the solution also means holding ourselves accountable for outcomes.

This mindset is why we invested in a new data system, CEMAsys, to improve our emission calculations. It’s why we joined Supplier Leadership on Climate Transition courses, building competence in environmental footprinting. And it’s why we’re now working closely with suppliers to improve data accuracy and transparency across our value chain.

We know our biggest emissions sit in Scope 3, particularly in purchased goods, trasportation and services. That insight gives us direction. It shows us where to focus next and where we can make the biggest impact. But we also know that the only way to eat an elephant is in small bites (by the way, we would of course NEVER eat an elephant).

The power of “we”

None of this happens alone. Sustainability is a team sport and that’s where our third company value The power of we come in.

With more than 250 colleagues across five countries, our strength lies in our diversity of perspectives and skills. When everyone contributes, ideas evolve and impact grows. That collective mindset is what allows us to turn ambition into action.

We actively involve employees through initiatives like our Sustainability Hub, an internal platform where we share training, updates and learning material. Sustainability training is now mandatory for everyone and continues to evolve. Employees can also submit ideas and initiatives directly through the platform, ensuring sustainability remains a shared responsibility rather than a top-down directive.

We encourage all employees to submit initiatives and we do what we can to bring them to life. Small actions, big signal. It shows how values turn into behaviour when people are empowered. We are still in the beginning of this, we have renovated our office in Vietnam and taking inputs about wishes for the office space, we have launched donating blood in office hours (voluntary of course) and much more – you can read a lot more about our initiatives along with the reasons behind why some initiatives are carried out while others are not.  

More than environmental impact

As mentioned in the beginning, sustainability is not only about the environment. It’s also very much about the people. There are so many reasons why happy employees are better employees, and having happy employees is not just great for morale, it’s great for business.  It’s one of those things where there is no downside.

We’re proud to be a Certified Happy Workplace, based on monthly wellbeing surveys conducted through a third party platform called Zoios. With consistently high wellbeing scores, low stress levels and a strong eNPS, it confirms something we already believe deeply: that a healthy workplace is the foundation of long-term success.

We invest in learning and development through training programs, language courses, creative development sessions and our Spring Academy trainee program in Vietnam. We have our sustainability initiatives, where all employees can submit an initiative within ESG. If that is removing all single-use plastic  

Creating opportunities for growth isn’t just good for business, it’s good for people. The initiatives are very much to gather ideas on how to become an even better place to work.

We also take governance seriously. Our Code of Conduct and Environmental Code of Conduct set clear expectations for ethical behaviour, inclusion and responsibility. We operate a whistleblower scheme with an independent external law firm and continuously review our policies to ensure transparency and accountability.

Why it matters to our clients

Our clients increasingly face sustainability requirements of their own. ESG reporting, climate targets and supply chain transparency are no longer optional. They’re business critical. Many of our clients are well-known global companies and some are among the biggest in the word, and are met with much higher requirements, than we are.

By working with an ISO-certified partner, they gain more than creative excellence. They gain a partner who understands responsibility, structure and long-term value creation. Our sustainability journey helps them strengthen their own reporting, reduce risk and meet stakeholder expectations.

Looking ahead

We’re proud of the progress we’ve made so far, but we’re under no illusion that the work is done. Sustainability is not a project with an end date. It’s a mindset. A commitment. A journey (in lack of better and less cliché-ish words.

We will continue to expand our Scope 3 data, invest in renewable energy, roll out more training and set office-specific reduction targets. Because we believe we can always do more and we dare to.

Going into the process, we probably thought it would be easier and progress would happen much sooner. And others most likely struggle with similar issues, but my advice to anyone holding back a bit – get started, don’t wait. Because change doesn’t happen by waiting.
It happens by acting.