In the latest white paper in partnership with Oxford Economics, SAP reports that though most organisations today have volatile sustainability initiatives, there are emerging leaders who advocate the use of technology and data to power their companies’ sustainability goals.
The COVID-19 pandemic has amplified the importance of integrating sustainability into business operations to ensure that a company remains agile and resilient amidst the unprecedented challenges in supply chain and workforce management, among many others.
German software multinational SAP is among the global companies that have embedded sustainability measures within its operations– before and more so during the pandemic. Within the SAP ecosystem, the tech giant has been advocating for the true adoption of corporate sustainability through various initiatives, from developing sustainable business solutions like RISE with SAP to delivering accelerator programmes and spearheading studies centred on sustainability.
Most recently, SAP has collaborated with Oxford Economics, a leading provider of global economic forecasting and econometric analysis, to delve into today’s corporate sustainability initiatives, which include closing the green gap and leveraging technology and data. The white paper revealed that sustainability is at an inflection point based on the survey results from nearly 2,000 organisations that shared their aspirations, commitment, and progress to achieve sustainability.
SAP Reports Key Highlights of the White Paper
Vivek Bapat, Senior Vice President, Purpose and Sustainability at SAP shared that today’s company leaders understand the remarkable impact of having a sound sustainability strategy in achieving improved profitability, attracting customers and employees, as well as driving positive change across the entire supply chain. He stressed:
“But achieving these goals requires a high degree of communication and engagement. At SAP, we’re trying to understand how we can support these companies in realising results from their sustainability goals and defining best practices across industries.”
This latest SAP and Oxford Economics report offers extensive insights on corporate sustainability trends, challenges, and opportunities that company leaders can ponder on when designing their strategies. Here are some of the key highlights of the white paper:
Common Sustainability Benchmarks
The survey revealed that organisations acknowledge the positive impact of establishing sustainability measures not only in driving efficiency, profitability, and building brand reputation but more importantly, in meeting modern consumers’ and employees’ expectations. 63% of surveyed executives shared that their companies are implementing formal sustainability plans that have waste reduction (65%), carbon emissions tracking (53%), and energy use (47%) as the common benchmarks.
Sustainability Leaders to Lead in Closing the Green Gap
Though most organisations have established sustainability strategies, the report revealed that the Green Gap is wider when respondents look across their business ecosystems with only 27% having stringent policies about working with regulators to ensure the implementation of sustainable practices. Helping close the Green Gap in their companies are “Sustainability Leaders”, which is a small group (about 9%) of the respondents that have embraced comprehensive programmes and are witnessing improved sustainability outcomes, business performance, and brand reputation.
This elite group of executives exemplifies distinctive behaviors that help close their companies’ Green Gap such as setting clear expectations on sustainability performance and communicating it across the workforce and applying technology and data management expertise in key areas, to name a few.
Sustainability Leaders also understand the impact of the sustainability network effect and establishes policies that champion working sustainably with partners with a focus on improving business relationships.
Data Management to Drive Sustainability Success
Despite recognising data as one of the most critical drivers of achieving sustainability success, still, more than 50% of the respondents stated that there are insufficient data management and analysis skills in their organisation. The report highlighted that Sustainability Leaders stand out in data management–more likely to measure their carbon output, whether in specific areas of their business (66%, vs. 57% of other respondents) or across their business as a whole (25% vs. 15%). These leaders are also keener to measure carbon output for at least some suppliers or vendors (75%, vs. 57% of other respondents).
Sustainability Leaders values data accuracy, informs leadership about carbon output and takes comprehensive actions such as monitoring the energy and resources required to create and deliver products and services at a higher rate (58% of Leaders, vs. 41% of others). They also employ low-carbon transportation methods to move products and materials through the supply chain (38% vs. 23%) and are more likely to report significant emissions reductions (73% vs. 45%) and to have created new revenue streams (30% vs. 9%).
“Sustainability leaders go beyond vision to ensure that sustainability initiatives are acted upon,” said Edward Cone, Editorial Director, Oxford Economics. “They communicate with key constituencies both inside and outside the company, and they use integrated technologies to measure and track performance in a way that drives accountability.”
The SAP – Oxford Economics report concluded:
“Perhaps most importantly, companies need to engage the internal and external audiences on the front lines of implementing sustainability efforts—and the right integrated technology to connect data and enable the transparency, collaboration, and insights needed to drive sustainability that works for all stakeholders across the business and beyond.”
