In an era of increasing digitalization, the environmental impacts of IT are becoming more pronounced. A recent report from the International Energy Agency finds that data centers and data transmission networks now account for 1–1.5% of the global electricity demand. Beyond energy consumption, the carbon emissions associated with IT activities further compound the challenges of climate change, presenting considerable risks to our environment. With the pivot to genAI solutions across all of IT, we should expect this number to grow significantly.
The focus of sustainable IT is on mitigating the adverse effects of IT operations and related equipment and services on the environment. In simpler terms, how can we collectively reduce the carbon footprint generated by IT? This distinction sets it apart from ‘IT for sustainability’ which focuses on using digital technologies to bolster a company’s broader environmental sustainability initiatives.
Before we look at strategies designed to make IT operations more environmentally responsible and sustainable, it is important to understand the pivotal role it plays in the battle against climate change.
Measuring Carbon Emissions
To address the climate change challenge, many organizations are looking for ways to reduce their IT carbon footprint and achieve their sustainability goals. A recent global survey, The 2023 State of IT Sustainability Report, reveals that 97% of companies have either already implemented sustainability initiatives (74%) or plan to do so (23%).
However, measuring and managing the carbon emissions of IT operations is not an easy task, especially when dealing with complex and heterogeneous IT environments that span multiple data centers, SaaS suppliers and public clouds. This is because it is a challenge to obtain a comprehensive and unified view of the environmental impact associated with these operations.
To further complicate this, we see that all enterprises have IT as an integral part of their product deliveries. Moreover, the market requires that you as an enterprise can allocate all your carbon emissions to the products you sell. The more complex your product portfolio is and the more digital your products are, the more complicated this becomes.
Considering this, the need for proper tools and expertise to measure and manage carbon emissions has never been more paramount. And this is where Green IT operations (GreenOps) comes into play.
What is GreenOps?
GreenOps is not a fad; it is the practice of managing digital technologies with the dual aim of minimizing environmental impact and enhancing operational efficiency.
The advantage of implementing GreenOps within IT operations lies in its ability to reduce carbon emissions and costs simultaneously, particularly through the decommissioning or rightsizing of physical servers and cloud resources. This sets it apart from other sustainability initiatives that often require significant capital investment or increased operational expenses.
Beyond its application to data center equipment and cloud services, GreenOps encompasses all IT assets, extending its reach to end-user equipment. Organizations that adopt GreenOps initiatives can:
- Identify and map sources of carbon in their IT ecosystem
- Analyze emissions across data centers, public clouds, SaaS vendors and all owned IT assets
- Track carbon emissions, identify opportunities for optimization and monitor progress toward their sustainability goals
- Decarbonize IT through service-oriented trade-offs
- Allocate carbon emissions to the services and products delivered.
GreenOps is strategically designed to help you achieve sustainable IT operations while delivering business value and competitive advantage. By reducing your IT carbon footprint, you will not only contribute to the global effort of mitigating climate change but also:
- Save costs by optimizing your IT resource utilization and avoiding unnecessary energy consumption
- Enhance your brand reputation and customer loyalty by demonstrating your commitment to environmental responsibility
- Comply with regulatory requirements and avoid potential fines or penalties related to carbon emissions
- Innovate and differentiate your products and services by incorporating sustainability features and benefits.
Needless to say, GreenOps is your ally in aligning environmental stewardship with operational excellence.
