Head to head: “How important are Green IT issues to the end-user?”

ANALYST: IBRS

Dr. Kevin McIsaac, advisor

Climate change is now a hot social issue and organisations with a “social responsibility” strategic objective are looking to reduce their environmental impact.

While reducing environmental impact is a laudable goal, the reality is that Green projects must have clear economic benefits. As a result of the uncertainty created by the deteriorating global economic environment it is expected that current Green IT projects will be closely scrutinised and those that lack clear financial benefits will be shelved.

The data centre is a prime target because in most organisations it houses a significant proportion of IT resources, and it is the area over which IT has the greatest control.

IT organisations are looking for short-term initiatives that are self-funding and can be accomplished with little or no capital investment. A key success factor is the identification of, and engagement with, a stakeholder who has the authority to push the project though when it gets stopped by organisational blockages. Look for an executive who has a corporate accountability for a social responsibility objective or attachment to a Green agenda.