A Framework for Environmentally Responsible Business Strategies

A Framework for Environmentally Responsible Business Strategies

Bhuvan Unhelkar, Bharti Trivedi
Copyright: © 2011 |Pages: 19
DOI: 10.4018/978-1-60960-472-1.ch202
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Abstract

An organization’s future increasingly depends on its environmental sustainability, so it is vital to equip present business architecture with a framework for environmental compliance. A business needs to understand the Green policies, processes that create waste and emissions, enablement of efficient use of resources, metrics for monitoring the greening of the organization and implementation of environmental strategies. This chapter will provide a review of environmental challenges and understanding of the contribution of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in environmental strategies of a business and its sustainable management. A consolidated, systematic approach to the redesign of a business enterprise and to forming an Environmentally Responsible Business Strategy (ERBS) is presented. The methodology includes five activities: Need for reengineering the business architecture, Map and investigate the processes, Design ERBS, Implement reengineered process and employ ERBS and improve continuously to monetize emissions.
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Ict And The Environment: Literature Review

Firstly, in order to understand the role of ICT to reengineer the business process to attain the ERBS, an understanding of the direct carbon footprints of the ICT sector is required. Secondly, the quantifiable emissions reductions that can be enabled through ICT applications in other sectors of economy (Tang, 2008) need to be understood. Finally, the new market opportunities and product innovations are considered.

The ICT industry has a very significant role to play in reducing Green House Gas (GHG) emissions (Tang, 2008). According to the estimates of Gartner the global information and communications technology (ICT) industry accounts for approximately 2 percent of global carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions (portal.unesco.org) stated that ICT can play a vital role in combating climate change. They can be used for remote monitoring of climate change and gathering important scientific data - for instance, using telemetry or remote sensing by satellite. Furthermore, smart technologies can usher in a whole new generation of energy-efficient products, notably in next-generation networks (NGN). According to the Worthington (2009) these emissions could achieve a 15% reduction in overall emissions by 2020.

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