Green IT – a Challenge for Everyone in the Company

More than ever, the protection of natural resources is a central task, also and especially for companies. An important factor for saving energy and thus greenhouse gases can be summarized under the keyword Green IT. The challenges in the resource-conserving use of information and communication technologies lie not only with the IT departments of companies, but also and above all with each and every individual.

"It helps if everyone uses less," emphasizes Thomas Droste, Head of IT Operations at Babtec. Even small savings can make a difference - through actions as simple as turning off monitors and other peripherals at times when they are not needed. The responsibility here lies with each and every individual.

But companies can make it easier for their employees by, for example, purchasing power strips with central switches to turn off all peripherals at the touch of a button. These reduce the risk of forgetting and the effort required by individual employees, which can also increase acceptance of energy-saving measures. And: "If you pay a little attention to your energy consumption and walk through the world with your eyes open, you will quickly notice other potential savings," explains Thomas Droste.

At the same time, there are also the larger, strategic decisions within the company. For example, the number of servers can often be reduced by replacing many small ones with a few large ones with greater computing capacity. Outsourcing applications to the cloud can also be worthwhile: The more companies share the same servers, the more efficiently computing power can be distributed. This also has a positive impact on the energy-intensive cooling down of server rooms.

The same applies to workstations: Replacing desktop PCs with modern, economical laptops can in turn significantly reduce power consumption. This example also shows that individual effects of measures (such as lower energy consumption here) can hardly be considered in isolation: After all, laptops and cloud storage additionally enable employees to work on a mobile or hybrid basis - a factor that has become enormously important at the latest since the onset of the Corona pandemic.

Mobile working itself does not reduce emissions - the energy saved at the company's premises is now used elsewhere. But it does reduce emissions from road traffic by reducing trips between home and work. In addition, if less staff are in the office every day, fewer workstations are needed, and therefore less equipment such as monitors or keyboards. Workspaces can be redesigned according to modern aspects and, together with the flexibilization of working hours and location, contribute to higher employee motivation and productivity.

The latter can also be an important criterion for convincing investors of the sustainability goals, for example, because measures such as the purchase of new equipment or the installation of solar systems on roofs initially cause costs and cannot always be immediately subordinated to the principle of profit maximization. But less energy consumption also means lower running costs, which means that the investments often pay off in the long run.

The measures and potential problems mentioned are only a small selection, but they clearly show that the solutions to the challenges companies face when it comes to green IT must be just as individual as they are. And while one company may not be able to convince its investors of the advantages of more expensive but more sustainable technology, another may not be able to install solar panels because the company premises are only rented. Or switching to a cloud server is not technically possible because of data protection guidelines or self-programmed applications.

So every company has to find the mix of measures that suits its own circumstances and challenges. And many things also have to be rethought: When can meetings, customer events or perhaps trade fairs be held digitally, thus saving on travel or even flights? And when is personal contact indispensable? Which processes can be automated to save energy and which should remain in the hands of each and every individual? The opportunities and challenges lie with everyone - companies, employees, managers and all other stakeholders.