ESG and digital transformation united as one

With climate change action gaining prominence, businesses are leading the way in trying to balance digital transformation and the environment. They are achieving this through increasing their use of cloud solutions and at the same time strengthening their commitments for sustainability goals. They are adopting eco-friendly operations, committing to strengthening inclusion and diversity at workplaces, participating in climate change initiatives; overall aiming at making environmental, social, and governance activities a priority in their businesses. At the same time, businesses’ adoption of cloud computing is at its highest level ever with the prediction that it will continue to rise as more business increase their use of cloud services.

This development is timely; it is coming at a time when the world is looking for ways to reduce the environmental effects occasioned by digital transformation. With increased data storage needs businesses are leading the way in adopting technologies that enhance efficiency, reduce the cost of operation, and at the same time protect our environment. This is proof that cloud services can help businesses in achieving environmental, social, and governance goals.

In a survey of executives from fortune 100 companies, PWC found that sixty per cent of the business leaders have adopted cloud solutions as part of enhancing their ESG goals. Although this is a positive move, business executives are reminded of the potential problems that come with cloud solution deployment. As they embrace the cloud, demand for energy increases leading to calls to pay special attention to cloud solutions and data centre efficiency. Adoption of data centre cooling technologies such as liquid immersion cooling is one of the measures that businesses can use to reduce their impact on the environment. Some have termed this adoption as the easiest way through which business can achieve their net-zero carbon targets.

Meeting ESG goals

Cloud solutions are assisting businesses to meet their ESG goals on two fronts. The first one is through meeting the requirements that make a business environmentally friendly. With a cloud, solution businesses can migrate from on-premise data centres where they not only free up spaces but also shift part of their operations to entities that can provide them efficiently and securely. With such developments, businesses are not only cutting their emissions but also reducing the amount of energy that they use. Data centres are leading in the adoption of efficient data cooling technologies further aiding businesses in meeting their ESG goals. Secondly, enhancing reporting where cloud-based data management is helping support ESG through automation of processes and standardisation. This helps business organisations increase transparency as they seek to under the diverse environment in which they operate. This is important as there is a growing interest in the development of controls and metrics in ESG reporting. The complexity of ESG reporting requires systems that allow sourcing and analysing of data. Cloud solutions are offering this capability.

When businesses balance between digital transformation and environmental consideration, it becomes easy to meet their ESG goals, therefore raising their stakes high in the respective industry. Already those aspiring to achieve this have plenty of examples to learn from.