Information technology (IT) companies may find fertile ground selling green IT products and services to customers looking for eco-friendly technology solutions, according to research results released this week by CompTIA, a Downers Grove, Illinois-based IT trade association.
A sizeable number of companies (74 percent) surveyed by CompTIA (News - Alert) say that, when they consider hiring IT consultants, they want them to know how to implement energy-efficient initiatives. This finding is in line with other data in the association’s Second Annual Green IT Insights and Opportunities study, which reveals that companies consider power management, or the potential to save on energy costs, to be the prime driver of green IT initiatives.
“IT resellers who are knowledgeable about energy conservation can use that knowledge not only to help current customers, but to attract new ones as well,” said Brenda Chan, Senior Research Analyst, CompTIA. “Being green may entail efforts to reduce energy consumption; manufacturing, purchasing and using green IT products; having an eWaste system; holding green certifications; or demonstrating expertise in green regulations.”
Customer organizations that already are committed to corporate social responsibility/green IT are significantly more likely (91 percent) to factor energy efficiency into their IT hiring decisions than are companies with partial (55 percent) or no (18 percent) sustainability strategies.
Mid-size to large companies also are more likely to consider green factors than are small businesses. More than seven in ten companies with 100 or more employees say green is an important factor, compared to just five in ten companies with fewer than 100 employees.
Organizations look to IT companies for a variety of green solutions. More than half of the companies surveyed by CompTIA (59 percent) say that the IT companies they’ve hired have provided assistance with green IT projects—specifically,
33 percent have requested green IT audits
29 percent have calculated their carbon footprint
28 percent have used data destruction
CompTIA’s Second Annual Green IT Insights and Opportunities study is based on an online survey of 650 IT and business executives involved in green initiatives or strategies in the United States, United Kingdom and Germany. The complete report is available at no cost to CompTIA members who can access the information at www.CompTIA.org or by contacting research@comptia.org.
Cheryl Kaften is an accomplished communicator who has written for consumer and corporate audiences. She has worked extensively for MasterCard (News - Alert) Worldwide, Philip Morris USA (Altria), and KPMG, and has consulted for Estee Lauder and the Philadelphia Inquirer Newspapers. To read more of her articles, please visit her columnist page.
Edited by
Jennifer Russell
