Following GPJ Germany’s significant milestone achieving ISO 20121 certification, we want to provide this handy FAQ to give more depth about the certification, how the benefits reach our clients and what’s over the horizon. As industry leaders, we uphold responsible, transparent practices and ensure a holistic approach to everything we do.
(Pictured: Team GPJ Germany proudly celebrating their momentous certification)
Q: What is ISO 20121?
A: ISO 20121 is the international standard for sustainable event management, guiding us on how to integrate social, economic and environmental sustainability into event planning and execution. Think of it as a best practice blueprint for making responsible decisions a core part of your events.
Q: How does this affect business operations?
A: Adhering to ISO 20121 standards establishes numerous default processes to aid project management. Through smart workflows, we engage in sustainable procurement practices, effective risk management and ensure legal compliance. Project management for client experiences includes ISO-relevant steps like stakeholder analysis, goal setting and comprehensive documentation.
Q: Does this certification constrain or silo the way we already do things?
A: Not at all! ISO 20121 allows flexibility and encourages continuous improvement without imposing rigid measures. Go vegan, get reusable, use green energy if you can, where you can – but it’s not mandatory.
Q: What does this look like day-to-day?
A: We focus on key impact areas and stakeholders, establish a solid sustainability baseline, and implement best practices wherever possible. Beyond ISO 20121 compliant event management, we provide a complete suite of services including carbon footprint analysis, inclusive event design, communication strategies, and customized sustainability playbooks.
Q: What is the benefit for GPJ clients?
A: Most processes can be tailored to you. Whether you’re aiming for basic tweaks or major transformations, ISO 20121 standards can be customized to match your goals and scale, starting with the basics and scaling up as desired. We can fully support organizations in achieving sustainability objectives across their experiential marketing programs, whilst continually raising the bar.
Ultimately, it’s not what we say but what we do. GPJ is on a path forward and together, our work is made better by transforming responsible strategies into impactful brand experiences around the world. We are excited for our agency’s future journey in sustainable development, as we instill trust, bring certainty and ensure compliance for our clients at every step of our journey together.
