A practical contributor

In 2020, 4Service hired Tone Hartviksen as head of social sustainability. Today, she is the ESG manager for the entire company that counts for about 4,000 people.

“We’ve been saying for quite some time that we must be the best when it comes to practical sustainability. This naturally still applies,” says Tone Hartviksen.

ESG stands for environmental, social and corporate governance. Tone Hartviksen’s expanded role has resulted in many new tasks.

“Before, I concentrated on the S in ESG. With two additional areas of responsibility, E and G, my job has shifted from mainly concerning people, both employees and those outside the labour market, to including environmental and business aspects. We can add increasing pressure to show the organisation’s sustainability activities from customers, authorities, owners, and even colleagues. Good intentions and fine words are not enough, as this must be documentable, measurable and in accordance with reporting standards.

ESG is the framework for sustainability activities at 4Service, and the company has specifically chosen to highlight food and people as the two most important areas to prioritise.

“Food and people are the areas where we can make the greatest difference. They’re directly linked to our core business. This concrete approach defines practical sustainability for us in many ways,” Tone Hartviksen says with great conviction.

“We’ve added more structure and become even more proactive. We’ve always been driven by personal initiatives from enthusiasts throughout the company. We want to retain this, of course, but we also need clear goals, understandable strategies and action plans that are well-anchored at all levels.”

Henriette Haugsnes is quality manager at 4Service. Her work consists primarily of ensuring that the company passes audits and delivers on environmental and quality certifications.

“I have a very varied working day. I work mostly with the management team for cleaning and with the Group on certificates, as well as analyses, goals and reporting within quality, HSE and the environment. For our part, 2021 was characterised by a structured and detailed approach. We’re always looking for opportunities for improvement, to strengthen our competitiveness going forward.

Putting the spotlight on quality is always worthwhile. Henriette Haugsnes can share good feedback from both customers and employees.

“Last year’s customer survey gave some very good results, particularly when viewed in the context of the second year of the pandemic. Covid-19 doesn’t seem to have affected the quality offered to customers; on the contrary in fact. The most pleasing aspect is that once again our own employees rated us highly in the annual employee survey,” says the quality manager.

Another positive result for Henriette Haugsnes and 4Service was that the cleaning division became climate neutral in 2021.

“At the very beginning of the year, we achieved our goal of becoming climate neutral. In the following months, we took further steps and created good systems to collect additional data. Even though we still have to compensate to a degree by, among other things, buying climate credits, the most important aspect is to constantly look for and find new ways to reduce our footprint,” Henriette Haugsnes explains.

Since the entire Group achieved ISO quality and environmental certification in 2020, 4Service has focused on goals and results.

“Initially, it was difficult to figure out what and how to measure, particularly within the fields of environment. But with two years’ experience, we’re beginning to see results and trends in the metrics, which makes it easier to identify what we’re doing well and where we can improve.”

During the year, the cleaning division increased the proportion of electric vehicles, focused on using environmentally labelled disposable items and reduced consumption of plastic.

“It’s encouraging to see that this is not just important for the environment, but also for customers and employees. As a company, we have a concise message and clear sustainability ambitions,” says Henriette Haugsnes.

Trine Holmen-Løkken is director of canteen and staff restaurants at 4Service. Her team includes skilled regional managers in Trondheim, Bergen and Oslo.

“As a leader, my most important tasks are to make sure that we are on track, and to keep the team together,” says Trine Holmen-Løkken.

The pandemic was tough for everyone, but perhaps especially for people working in the service industry.

“2021 was just as demanding as 2020. Fortunately, we’ve managed to stand together and help each other. This makes me both proud and optimistic about the future.”

Autumn was particularly favourable for everyone at canteen and staff restaurants. Sales increased and guests were beginning to come back.

“When another lockdown was introduced in December, we chose not to temporary suspend employees. Instead, the working time was used to improve skills and get up to speed. I was glad we made that choice then, and I’m probably even more happy about it today.”

Trine Holmen-Løkken says that more than 100 employees completed baking courses, and there is now a vast reserve of internal inspiration.

“In a hectic everyday routine, it’s easy to forget that everyone needs to stock up on expertise and inspiration. Prioritising this during some tough times will be to our benefit for many years to come,” says the director.

Another important project was to implement the concept of “Bærekraftig matglede”. Trine Holmen-Løkken explains:

“We’ve been working on this project for the last two years, and now we’re really starting to see the results of our efforts. In 2021, we gave weight to becoming greener, and now 53 per cent of everything we procure is from that particular category.”

It is typical of 4Service that it does not stop there. Headed by Trine Holmen-Løkken, the company will do even more in this area.

“Towards the end of the year, we turned our attention to seafood. It’s naturally easy to just serve farmed salmon. Most people like the taste, and the product requires very little preparation. But the sea has so much more to offer! In 2022, we’ll introduce our guests to several tasty options from the sea, and hopefully further reduce the amount of meat consumed. The secret is not to remove anything, but rather to offer attractive alternatives.”

The 2022 target for use of green ingredients is 55 per cent, while the fish ratio will be increased from 4 to 16 per cent. To achieve this, 4Service has joined forces with a number of course providers.

“In the area of green produce, we’ve worked closely with Vidar Bergum. He’s held courses for our employees. The content was filmed and is now part of our knowledge bank. Going forward, we’ll do the same for fish, but in this case in cooperation with Lerøy,” Trine Holmen-Løkken concludes.