Harnessing the power of data and AI to operationalize sustainability

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Companies are under mounting pressure from regulators, investors, and consumers to progress toward more sustainable and socially responsible business operations — and to demonstrate these measures in a robust and verifiable way. In fact, corporate responsibility and environmental sustainability risks tied as the third highest concerns for organizations, as ranked by large corporations in a 2021 Forrester report. However, the various types of data that companies need to understand and report on sustainability initiatives remains highly fragmented and difficult for all relevant parties to access.

To help organizations respond to these challenges, IBM has acquired Envizi, a leading data and analytics software provider for environmental performance management. Envizi complements IBM’s growing portfolio of AI-powered software — including IBM Maximo asset management solutions, IBM Sterling supply chain solutions and IBM Environmental Intelligence Suite — to help companies assess the impacts of the environment on business and of business on the environment.

Find out how to create a resilient, sustainable future

Sustainability innovation is building momentum

As Envizi founder David Solsky pointed out during our recent sit-down, when it comes to sustainability, executives around the world have changed their attitudes dramatically over just the past two years. Today’s leaders are excited and energized by the chance to reimagine business and commerce with a sustainability-first mindset. The response to the COVID-19 pandemic during this same time has shown the power of the enterprise to adapt and thrive in adversity, and the rapid development of new vaccines has shown the power of technological transformation.

Sustainability is now a boardroom issue with a visible effect on the bottom line. Today teams have the proper resources and leadership buy-in to accomplish ESG goals and meet the moment.

But when organizational leaders step back to assess how to tackle sustainability, a common modern-day challenge becomes clear: getting, applying and managing the data. Much of the crucial data for sustainability improvements — for example, energy data across fragmented markets — is difficult to capture and track. While acquiring this data is likely to remain a challenge, we’re working to reduce the burden of acquisition by unifying key systems of record.