Majority of IT decision-makers think the IT-department can do much more to make their organisation more sustainable

Sustainability opportunities

When it comes to sustainability within organisations, IT and sustainability decision-makers identify several opportunities. Both groups consider digitisation to reduce paper consumption as the greatest opportunity, with 45 percent and 41 percent respectively. Consider digital signatures, for example. Smart meters and energy management technologies are viewed as a major opportunity as well, as is remote working to reduce CO2 emissions.

Interestingly, the sustainability of IT itself is hardly mentioned by both groups, despite high-impact opportunities in this regard. The deployment of AI or IoT for predictive maintenance, medical intelligence or precision agriculture, for example, is not on the radar either.

Sustainability and IT objectives

Organisations are still missing out on many opportunities. One reason may be that not all opportunities are spotted. In addition, organisations seem to struggle to make the right choices on sustainability and the role of IT. The link between sustainability goals and IT goals is a good starting point for steering them in the right direction. Organisations still have some steps to take in this regard. Only 37 percent of sustainability decision-makers identify this link within their organisation. This is about half (49%) for IT decision-makers.

On including IT capabilities in sustainability goals and initiatives, the two groups state the following:

Maaike Maranus - van de Vrande, Sustainability Director at Conclusion: “The sustainability and IT departments need to become more aware of each other. IT can make a positive contribution to improving the sustainability of organisations and solving many social problems. In fact, IT plays a crucial part in this regard. Unfortunately, Dutch businesses remain insufficiently aware of the key role of IT. Which is a shame, because many opportunities remain untouched as a result. The time has come for sustainability and IT departments to get together to take the next step in sustainability.”

*In the message, 'decision-makers' is used for readability, referring to both decision-makers and influencers.