Next up in our series looking at the technology trends predicted to be big for the New Year, we’re focusing on sustainability. It’s a topic that dominated the headlines and news agenda, around the COP26 summit in November. The pandemic has also highlighted a number of areas where we could be more sustainable; for example, tackling the amount of packaging literally piled up on our doorsteps with the rise in online shopping.
So, let’s start with what the analysts are saying…
According to Forrester:
- In the last 12 months, the EU: 1) adopted a climate adaptation policy; 2) introduced the first delegated act for its taxonomy stipulating what counts as environmental objectives for EU climate adaptation and mitigation; and 3) adopted a proposal to make corporate sustainability reporting standardised and mandatory for more companies from 2023.
- But EU consumers are sceptical; Forrester’s 2021 data reveals that just 34% trust companies when they say they will commit to reducing climate change. Greenwashers that have only embraced sustainability in their communications will struggle to adapt. Thus, 25% more EU companies — especially in financial services and retail — will add chief sustainability officers to their rosters in 2022.
According to IDC:
- Sustainability within technology will be of growing importance
- By 2023, businesses will require 55% of G2000 (Forbes list of world’s largest public companies) CIOs to implement sustainable IT, embedding environmental, social, and governance practices into the technology life cycle from acquisition to disposal
- Using technology to support sustainability initiatives
- By 2025, 75% of organizations will deploy software tools to monitor utilization on premises, in the cloud, or at edge locations to improve utilization metrics that reduce energy costs and improve sustainability
- Committing to sustainable initiatives
- By 2026, 30% of organizations will commit to short-, mid-, and long-term sustainability objectives that span 10+ years with assured funding from stakeholders despite change of personnel during this time
What’s our HotTake? Martin Sparey, head of UK B2B at Hotwire:
“It’s clear that businesses are finally doing more than simply paying lip-service to sustainability. Greenwashing won’t be tolerated, let alone trusted, by the public, so organisations need to match the marketing with mettle. Pressures are coming from all sides: from governments to regulators, and activists.
“It’s no longer enough to say ‘we’re doing sustainability’. It needs to be engrained within the collective inside an organisation and then re-enforced externally through communications. Brands like Salesforce and Patagonia saw this at their inception and are reaping the rewards today through customer brand advocacy and purpose-driven reputations. We’ll see lots trying to replicate these successes, to varying degrees of success, as the dust settles on the outcomes of the likes of COP26.”
P.S. Want to make sure your tech business is set up for success next year? Rethinking your comms or marketing strategy? We’d love to hear from you here.