Pressure is mounting for businesses to operate in an environmentally sustainable and socially responsible manner. The advantages of sustainability initiatives are clear—your organization can reap the benefits, from cost reduction and a minimized environmental impact to brand reputation and attracting environmentally conscious customers.
But as important as it is, integrating sustainability into business initiatives can be cumbersome. Sustainable IT involves utilizing technology in a manner that is eco-friendly, economically viable and supports the combination of your on-premises and cloud-based infrastructure.
You need the right environmental, social and governance (ESG) strategy to streamline the process of incorporating sustainability efforts into your information technology.
It helps to take a comprehensive approach that considers not only the technology itself but also the associated processes and practices. This encompasses aspects such as hardware and software procurement, data management, software development and the operation and disposal of IT assets.
What you need to know to incorporate ESG practices into your organization
To grasp the intricacies of sustainable IT, it’s important to understand the ESG aspects. Environmental sustainability entails reducing the environmental impact of your IT, which can be achieved through measures like using energy-efficient hardware and implementing virtualization and cloud computing to minimize reliance on physical servers.
Social sustainability focuses on ensuring that your technology is used in a manner that benefits society. This includes promoting inclusion of under-served communities by providing access to technology and supporting the development of local communities.
Governance sustainability requires ensuring that your technology is deployed transparently, with accountability and with adherence to laws and regulations.
There’s no one-size-fits-all solution
It’s critical to acknowledge there’s no single easy solution or foolproof insight to address sustainable IT. However, a crucial step forward is to incorporate available IT sustainability intelligence as a decision factor alongside conventional considerations such as cost, compliance, usage, security, vulnerabilities and lifecycle.
Technology Value Optimization
Reallocate spend. Reduce the risk of audits and security breaches. And chart the most effective path to the cloud. Get the most from every IT dollar.
By actively considering sustainability intelligence, you can make informed decisions that prioritize environmental responsibility, social benefits and good governance in the realm of IT. This integration of sustainability into decision-making processes holds the potential to drive positive change and propel businesses toward a more sustainable future.
If you’re interested in learning more about sustainable IT and how you can apply these practices to your organization, check out our white paper, Sustainability: Making it a reality in a hybrid environment.
