At the start of the week, I joined a roundtable discussion at Westminster with B4NZ, celebrating the launch of the UK SME Voluntary Emissions Standard in the House of Commons.
During the conversation, I coined the phrase “Invisible Plumbing.” So what did I mean by that?
Let’s not make things complicated
Too often, we make things far too complicated. We expect people to have deep technical knowledge just to get basic things done in business. As an SME owner, I know the challenge firsthand — needing to understand tax law, HR law, data protection… all while actually delivering great service to clients.
But at home, I don’t need to understand plumbing. I turn on the tap, and water comes out. Simple. The entire process — from rainfall to running water — is invisible, reliable, and just works.
Sustainability, carbon accounting, and action plans should work the same way. Yet right now, they’re another piece of “visible plumbing” SME owners are expected to understand and manage.
FSB’s recent New Growth report shows that 64% of SME owners recognise the importance of sustainability — but most lack the time, skills, and finance to get started. So the question is: how do we make the plumbing invisible?
There’s already great progress happening:
- The new UK SME Voluntary Emissions Standard
- Project Perseus and open data tools being developed by Gavin Starks and the Icebreaker One team (which I’m proud to be on the steering group for)
- And many others building tech that simplifies carbon and energy data for business owners
All of this work needs to come together — seamlessly and behind the scenes — so that with the click of a button, SMEs have the information they need to make informed, climate-positive decisions. They can then share that data seamlessly with their supply chains and finance providers, no filling in multiple forms with the same questions asked repeatedly in slightly different ways.
Why is this so important?
Because SMEs can:
- Gain resilience through better energy control (and even production)
- Reduce costs and boost profitability
- Win procurement contracts that require sustainability credentials
- Attract sustainability-conscious customers
- Help the UK meet its net-zero targets
There are 5.5 million SMEs in the UK. Individually small, but collectively a huge force for change.
Let’s get on with giving them the invisible plumbing they need.
(And yes — I heard several people referencing “Invisible Plumbing” across London Climate Action Week events in the following 24 hours… so it seems the message is starting to flow!)