A clear message from the COP26 summit in Glasgow is that large corporations are under pressure to demonstrate how they will be reaching net zero. The UN will provide mechanisms for clearer measurement, therefore reducing opportunities for green washing.
I believe this pressure will naturally cascade to the IT department and those delivering IT services.
Our impact working in IT is twofold:
Back in October last year a group was formed to explore sustainability in ITAM. The group was formed as part of Working Group 21 (WG21), the international voluntary group that creates the 19770 family of standards.
Thank you to all the volunteers that joined the group and drove the conversation. As a group we have produced our first white paper, available free here: How IT Asset Management can contribute towards sustainability https://itamstandards.org/resources/
The Executive Summary is as follows, in essence, IT Asset Management has a real strategic opportunity to support the sustainability goals of every organization:
The objective of the paper is to inspire IT Asset Management and the broader IT Management profession to embrace sustainability into their IT practices.
This paper focuses not on purely energy consumption but on the whole lifecycle impact of IT services, including the raw materials that go into building software, hardware and cloud services.
We believe IT Asset Management professionals can have a dramatic impact on the management of Information Communications Technology (ICT), resulting in a more sustainable approach to IT asset use.
This paper has been compiled by a Working Group 21 (WG21) study group. WG21 is the international voluntary group that builds ITAM standards, including ISO/IEC 19770.
How IT Asset Management can contribute towards sustainability https://itamstandards.org/resources/
We would love to receive your feedback and will continue to research in this area. If you would like to get involved with this group please contact me. Thanks, Martin