As temperatures rise around the globe, the consequences of climate change are increasingly affecting every aspect of our lives — from limiting resources and environmental destruction to mental health issues and the spread of infectious diseases.
It’s no surprise that sustainability is now one of the most pressing challenges for businesses. The good news is that many organizations are progressing toward a green future. But more work is needed, according to a new study.
The 2024 Global Sustainability Barometer — the second annual study conducted by Ecosystm in collaboration with Kyndryl and commissioned by Microsoft — found that 84% of organizations place high strategic importance on achieving sustainability goals, but only 21% use technology to reduce their environmental footprint and shape their overall sustainability strategy.
Similarly, the 2024 Kyndryl Readiness Report shows that 90% of organizations focus on sustainability in their tech updates, but 54% struggle to meet their sustainability and ESG goals.
Faith Taylor, Chief Corporate Citizenship and Sustainability Officer at Kyndryl, said that by embedding sustainability into a company’s business strategy, processes and systems, organizations can enhance the value of their people and technology to meet internal objectives and create a positive impact. “Both the Global Sustainability Barometer and the Kyndryl Readiness Report not only highlight climate challenges but also provide an easy-to-understand roadmap for businesses to advance their sustainability journeys,” said Taylor.
The Global Sustainability Barometer study, which evaluates organizational strategy and technology adoption, offers insights into how businesses can harness technology and artificial intelligence (AI) to navigate the intricate landscape of sustainability.
Here are five key takeaways from the 2024 Global Sustainability Barometer study:
Stronger organizational synergy is required
The report states that 55% of respondents mentioned CEOs as the top stakeholder in driving sustainability strategy in enterprises. While increasing CEO involvement in shaping sustainability goals is a positive step, many organizations fail to fully engage two critical stakeholders: finance and technology. Aligning sustainability with finance is crucial to making it a core business priority, and technology is critical for implementation.
The full potential of technology is yet to be leveraged
Only 21% of IT groups recognize technology’s dual role in reducing their carbon footprint and advancing broader sustainability goals. Technology is essential to business transformation, and sustainability must be part of that roadmap. While 63% of tech teams are not focused on broader sustainability goals, 38% concentrate on their environmental impact.
“The climate crisis is becoming increasingly intense and disruptive, with massive business implications,” said Taylor. “The success of organizations’ sustainability efforts will be driven essentially by their ability to seamlessly integrate sustainability with their business objectives and strategic use of technology and resources.”
Limited data-driven transformation
Organizations have yet to unlock the potential of data in sustainability management. Only 34% use data-driven insights to drive performance and transform their business, while 19% have implemented actionable, data-driven sustainability initiatives. Most remain focused on operational and reporting requirements, highlighting the need to bridge this gap and prioritize sustainability.
The role of AI needs to be reimagined
While 55% of organizations believe AI will significantly impact their sustainability goals, they are not fully leveraging AI capabilities, often limiting initiatives to descriptive and interpretive analytics. Many organizations use AI for monitoring and reporting but fall short of proactive action. For example, while 62% use AI to monitor energy consumption, only 37% leverage predictive AI to forecast future energy needs based on trends and patterns.
“Technology can be highly transformative. Quality data governance paired with AI has the potential to be a major differentiator for companies in their sustainability journey,” said Matthew Sekol, Sustainability Global Black Belt at Microsoft. “AI can inform the future of sustainability through optimizations, the democratization of accessible information and even new revolutions in material sciences that we are only now beginning to recognize. As companies collect mountains of data for reporting, they must build data governance and layer on responsible AI practices to capture this opportunity.”
Deeper employee involvement is desired
Many organizations have not yet been able to make employees a core contributor to their sustainability journey. They have employee sustainability programs, but poor access to information and data often limits effectiveness. The report said 33% ensure staff are fully informed about sustainability progress, roles and key performance indicators, and only 9% link sustainability performance to staff compensation.
