Sustainability in the Software & Services Industry

Many software and information services companies have taken important steps toward making their operations and products more environmentally sustainable. They have launched products and solutions to reduce customers’ environmental impacts, such as weather-tracking irrigation software that avoids unnecessary water use. Information services companies are also providing customers with content about environmental sustainability. But there are significant differences in how companies have gone about integrating sustainability ideas into their organizations and value chains. The most innovative organizations are working to harness the creative energy of their employees to develop ideas on how they can improve their own company’s operations and how they can solve customers’ problems in new ways.

Sustainability Drivers

With the ever-expanding volume of data and the resulting storage requirements, many companies have seen their electricity costs soar. As power demands grow and energy costs rise in data centers, there are significant incentives to improve data center efficiency. Many companies tout the efficiency and green power sources of their data centers as a competitive advantage, and some are beginning to direct those communications outward to customers.

Companies are also finding ways to increase their own efficiency while giving benefits to employees. Allowing employees to work remotely can decrease the need for space that must be heated and cooled, as well as cut employee commuting costs and time, and increase flexibility.

Software and service firms can attempt to generate growth by developing solutions that help improve customer sustainability. For example, companies can create software to measure and reduce customers’ impacts, such as energy/carbon tracking software, or offer advisory services such energy audits. Entertainment, media, and marketing companies can create campaigns and communications to educate and alter the behavior of a wider customer base.

Challenges and Opportunities

Software and technology services companies can advance their sustainability agendas by asking key questions, including:

• How would changes in energy pricing or carbon regulation affect our business?
• Are we positioned to provide products and services that customers will want/need as interest in sustainability grows?
• Is our reputation on sustainability consistent with our actual performance?

Viridis has advised companies on these and other related issues.

Case Study

In a project for a leading global IT solutions company, Viridis helped one of our client’s top business units to develop a “green channel” program. The program is designed to create sales wins by bringing tangible sustainability benefits to the end customer by enabling the channel to effectively sell the green attributes of the company’s solutions.

In taking the green channel program from idea to execution, Viridis structured content so that it was accessible to all levels of channel partners while also backed by deep knowledge. To do so, we developed a framework to help channel partners organize and understand the many aspects of sustainability. Viridis aggregated green features and benefits stories from multiple parts of the client organization, and surveyed the competitive landscape to develop a compelling green value proposition for the company’s products and solutions. The final step was to create detailed sales tools and training documents, including sales slides, customer savings calculators, certification materials, and detailed reference materials to address channel partner needs.

At every step of the process, Viridis pilot tested concepts and materials with actual channel partners to ensure the direction and details of the program had impact and relevance. The result of this effort is a “first in the industry” green channel program that is differentiating the company and delivering sales wins.