Operations-driven sustainability
Operational sustainability helps businesses optimize their direct and indirect value chain practices, leading to higher resiliency and lower costs.
Sustainability and the future of business
Sustainability means meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.
Sustainable living has become a common goal for not only individuals but also for governments, educational institutions, and businesses across every industry. Today, viable businesses aren’t solely focused on generating profit—they’re looking at what is sometimes called the “triple bottom line” or the “three Ps” (profit, people, and the planet). The triple bottom line is a measurement of success that looks at revenue and the social and environmental impact of a business.
What is operational sustainability?
To achieve substantial sustainability goals and bolster that triple bottom line, businesses can take a closer look at their operations.
Operational sustainability is all about optimization. By increasing the efficiency of operations, businesses can reduce their negative environmental and societal impact.
Gain a competitive advantage with sustainable operations
There’s a reason why many businesses now have goals related to resource consumption and social impact. Sustainability in general, and sustainable operations in particular, can be a big competitive advantage.
For one thing, a commitment to sustainability is increasingly important to consumers, employees, and investors. These individuals want to support companies that are committed to helping the planet. Businesses that prioritize sustainability and responsible business operations can build brand loyalty with customers, retain top talent, and even attract investors looking to create a more socially and environmentally conscious portfolio.
Plus, operational sustainability doesn’t have to come with a hefty price tag. In fact, by optimizing operations, businesses can drive increased productivity and build processes and supply chains that minimize their impact.
Turns out sustainability isn’t just good for the planet, it’s good for business.
How to achieve operational sustainability
Create sustainable facilities
There are myriad ways for businesses to decrease the environmental impact of their facilities, from a building’s initial design to its eventual demolition. Ideally, sustainable facilities:
- Rely on renewable sources of energy.
- Focus on using water efficiently.
- Generate less waste.
- Improve its occupants’ quality of life.
- Have minimal impact on the surrounding ecosystem.
- Are multipurpose and built to last.
Redesign consumer packaging
Today’s consumers pay attention to the amount of waste they generate. Redesigning packaging and removing any excess material is an opportunity for companies to build customer loyalty while reducing costs and meeting sustainability goals.
Rethink logistics
Transportation can be one of the biggest contributors to a company’s greenhouse gas emissions. By rethinking logistics businesses can make substantial changes to their overall operational sustainability. Impactful changes could include optimizing vehicle routes, using less trucks, ships, and aircraft, and reconfiguring the supply chain so those transportation assets cover fewer miles.
How technology helps drive sustainable operations
Perhaps the single most important step in creating sustainable operations is to increase visibility. Many businesses find it difficult to accurately track every part of their operations, especially when it comes to sustainability metrics like carbon emissions. Businesses need solutions that give them a holistic and detailed view into their operations so they can pinpoint the greatest opportunities for improvement, create achievable goals, and monitor their progress.
The right technology can help companies gather information from across their operations so they can better understand their current environmental impact and make informed decisions. Tools like AI, machine learning, and the Internet of Things (IoT) can connect people with data and processes and provide a new level of transparency.
Digital twins
For example, when it comes to asset management, digital twin technology can help organizations reduce downtime and extend asset lifecycles, enabling both cost savings and more sustainable operations.
A digital twin is a digital representation of a tangible product, system, or process that can stand in for its physical twin during integration, testing, monitoring, and maintenance. Because it provides near real-time updates about its physical counterpart, a digital twin makes it easier for workers and AI tools to flag potential issues and understand how to optimize the asset’s performance.
With this level of transparency, companies can perform less reactive and more preventative maintenance across its operation. It allows them to fix small problems before they can become big ones that lead to inefficiencies, unnecessary energy drains or premature asset replacement. This kind of proactive approach means more sustainable operations management, including reduced downtime and cost savings.
Power sustainable technologies with the cloud
To make the best use of technologies like digital twins, companies can rely on cloud computing. The cloud connects people, processes, and data, helping businesses optimize their sustainability efforts and achieve their goals.
Plus, cloud computing requires less energy than traditional datacenters. In fact, a 2020 report from Microsoft showed that migrating to the cloud can reduce a business’s carbon footprint by up to 98 percent.
Operational sustainability is good for business
By incorporating environmentally conscious practices into operations, businesses can improve efficiency, reduce downtime, find cost savings, and even stir increased consumer interest in its products and services. But most of all, they can help ensure that future generations have the resources to meet their own needs.
Accelerate your sustainability journey
As part of its commitment to a more sustainable future, Microsoft has developed technology solutions that help businesses accelerate their sustainability journey. With Microsoft Cloud for Sustainability, companies can get the visibility they need to identify inefficiencies across their tools and systems, reduce the environmental impact of their operations, and improve sustainability reporting.
Frequently asked questions
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Operational sustainability is when a business’s operations meet the company’s current needs while minimizing its consumption of natural resources and negative impacts on society.
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Sustainability can come from any area of business operations, but supply chain management is a critical subset of operational sustainability that deals with optimizing the development and management of a business’s supply chain from end to end.
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There are three pillars of sustainability: environmental, social, and economic.
Social sustainability includes workplace issues like health and safety, inclusion, and work-life balance.
Economic sustainability focuses on an organization’s ability to maintain long-term business growth without hurting the environment, community, or the wellbeing of its employees.
Environmental sustainability is about protecting natural resources for future generations.
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To ensure operational sustainability, businesses must gain a deep level of visibility into their current operations so they can determine what needs to be optimized, set achievable and impactful goals, and track their progress.
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Operational sustainability helps businesses optimize their direct and indirect value chain practices, leading to higher resiliency and lower costs. It also helps attract customers, employees, and investors by demonstrating a company’s commitment to environmental and societal causes.
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