About Us
Welcome to Green Works Consulting, where we help companies and organisations navigate the complex landscape of sustainability and environmental responsibility. The role played by businesses in addressing the climate crisis and creating positive social change is huge and our services will help yours become a meaningful part of this.
Our experienced team is dedicated to helping organisations achieve long-term success while minimising their impact on the environment and people. We believe that businesses can be a force for good, and we work to create solutions that promote planetary boundaries, ethical standards, and social responsibility. We make change happen.
Find out more about our Cofounders below.
Paul Atkinson
Co-founder and Director
I have spent nearly 20 years as a management consultant working with organisations across Europe. I have extensive experience in looking at how businesses react to change and I specialise in coaching, training design and facilitating events to help businesses transition towards a new way of working.
I have been lucky enough to work with a wide variety of past and current clients including Nestle, Deloitte, UNICEF, UBS, FIFA and IMD business school.
So do you only work with large businesses?
Not at all – we work with companies of any size and as I have been personally involved in several start-ups I am fully aware of the challenges faced by smaller firms and SMEs. Through our coaching role in the Unlocking Potential programme we have also mentored some fantastic local Cornish businesses.
What do you do at Green Works?
I am passionate about advising business leaders and educating teams on how to transition to more sustainable working . I design and deliver training and coaching that encourages people to rethink conventional ways of doing things and challenge traditional business models with new green economy ideas. I am a regular speaker at conferences and events and have recently been engaged on projects involving engineering, tourism and the built environment. As a lover of the mountains and snow sports I also have a keen interest in ways that the outdoor industry can make change through my work with environmental charity Protect our Winters UK.
So are you a scientist by training?
I actually come from more of a business perspective and hold an MSc in Green Economics. I have a good technical knowledge base around climate change and I add value in finding ways that businesses can embrace a better way of working through education and leadership training.
Jennie Atkinson
Co-founder and Director
My career and training initially led me into senior marketing roles for large FMCG brands before moving into sustainability. As European sustainability lead for a large multinational, I lead the sustainable packaging agenda and sustainability strategy development for the grocery and dairy category.
My experience includes sustainability strategy and stakeholder engagement, packaging and supply chain design and dairy industry emissions reduction.
So what are the challenges large businesses face on sustainability?
Well, there’s a few. The first challenge is usually to get full buy in from senior management that sustainability is a must-do these days, it is not optional anymore.
Stakeholder engagement is critical, identifying the material issues for the organisation as well as any concerns or conflicting interests. Internal politics and shareholder interests can be difficult to navigate but with a solid business case many challenges can be overcome.
It really helps to break down the complexities of sustainability into business language and to weave sustainability into existing business strategy and processes, rather than an add-on or separate project. Ultimately, sustainability should just be the way we do business.
What do you do at Green Works?
My role is very varied. I often take a business at the start of their journey back to the fundamentals of their mission, vision and purpose. Getting clarity on these aspects allows for solid strategy that links directly back to your purpose, that’s where the real impact is.
My marketing background comes in handy here, having worked on brand strategy for much loved brands like Philadelphia, Dairylea and Tassimo. I also lead on stakeholder engagement, new product development and circular business models.
What I probably love most though is pulling together a holistic sustainable business strategy and action plan and then seeing it come to life. There’s nothing better than seeing changes implemented!
So what gets you out of bed in the morning?
Well besides coffee… What really motivates me is to create positive action and I am lucky to get to do that with my work and also in my free time.
As a volunteer, I co-lead two local community groups in Hayle, St Ives Bay Marine Group which aims to explore and protect the coastal and marine environment, and Sustainable Hayle which focuses on building a resilient local community and tackling climate change.
Outside of that I also teach yoga, preferably on the beach where we can experience our connection with nature.
Our Clients
Our clients vary in size, sector and location – big international organisations can drive change at scale due to their size and reach, but smaller companies have an important role to play in the green transition. Each of the businesses we work with are at different stages of their sustainability journey and our role ranges from full ESG strategy and Net Zero implementation to leadership coaching or education. Whatever their brief to us, our clients are all keen to be part of the solution, not the problem.
We have worked with many global brands but feel equally at home with small local businesses or community groups. See our work for more details.
Get In Touch
Give us a call or drop us an email to start the conversation. We love to talk all things sustainability and so do not hesitate to get in touch.
We offer a free 30 minute zoom chat to learn more about your ambitions and see where we can help