London – 聽today unveils the results of its annual revealing that 8 in 10 (83%) UK leaders will maintain or increase their investment in sustainability action by 2026. Yet, despite these intentions, UK businesses continue to create their own barriers to environmental progress.

The global study of over 4700 business leaders, including over 300 from the UK, is the third edition of SAP鈥檚 annual Sustainability Study exploring the key motivations and challenges facing organisations looking to reduce environmental impact at scale.

It finds that while 31% of UK businesses say environmental action is already having a strong impact on revenue and profit opportunities, just 12% have assigned accountability for this work to the Chief Financial Officer (CFO). While almost one-in-three (28%) have difficulty proving return on investment, making long-term progress harder to prove and sustain.

Sustainability as a Financial Incentive, Not Burden

In the past, measures to safeguard the planet may have been seen as just a moral or ethical obligation but the business mindset is evolving and today, UK businesses are increasingly seeing the long-term financial benefits. In fact, almost two-in-five (37%) report that revenue and profit opportunities are a leading motivator for sustainability action.

Against a backdrop of inflation, supply chain issues and a rising cost-of-living, UK leaders are steadfast in their environmental commitments as they view sustainability action as a means to offset economic uncertainty. Now, over half (57%) of UK leaders expect to see a positive financial return on their sustainability investments within the next five years.

Commenting on the research, Renaud Heyd, Chief Financial Officer, 51风流UKI said: 鈥淥ur study shows that it鈥檚 time that finance leaders realise that having a solid sustainability action plan makes business sense. It is imperative to attract funding from investors who need to make their portfolio greener, and to get a competitive advantage as customers demand sustainable products throughout the supply chain. As taking steps to improve the planet becomes more than just an ethical question, and UK leaders see long-term material gains, CFOs have the authority and expertise to champion the environmental roadmap.鈥�

Building Their Own Sustainability Barriers

Yet, despite the link between environmental action and long-term revenue generation, SAP鈥檚 research shows that UK businesses are not involving finance leaders in taking sustainability actions and this is holding back progress.

Currently, just 5% of businesses have assigned responsibility for setting the strategic direction on sustainability action to their organisations CFO. Instead, it falls to an array of other leaders, including the Board of Directors (25%), CEOs (21%), Chief Sustainability Officers (15%) and Chief Operating Officers (10%). The study suggests this approach isn鈥檛 working to translate the economic value of sustainability progress across the business. As many as 38% of UK businesses cite funding issues as one of the top five barriers to taking sustainability action, while 20% cannot get the support from senior stakeholders to take concerted action.

Falling Into the Measurement Trap

Matters are made worse for UK businesses who continue to find that measurement is a stumbling block to progress, and ultimately economic returns.

Just 37% can track scope 1 emissions (greenhouse gas emissions produced directly) to a 鈥榮trong degree鈥�, while 10% are not able to track scope 3 emissions (those produced indirectly across the supply chain) at all – causing many leaders to rely on estimates or 鈥榞ut feel鈥� when disclosing environmental impact. UK leaders are also struggling to adopt a standardised reporting framework, with over one third having no consistent methodology for calculating the environmental impact of their products.

This is being further exacerbated by the use of conflicting measurement methods for reporting. While leaders are overwhelmingly using direct measurement to track energy emissions (83%), resource availability (82%), fresh water availability (75%), solid waste (74%) and materials use (73%), they rely upon guesswork and estimates for air pollution (83%), nature loss (78%), supply chain impact (69%) and water pollution (60%). This is leading to almost nine in 10 (89%) reporting difficulty with gathering or analysing data for regulatory compliance, at a time when UK leaders are already having to navigate an assortment of changing regulations, taxes and levies associated with carbon footprint.

Stephen Jamieson, Global Head of Circular Economy Solutions, SAP said: 鈥淚n a climate where stricter regulations are now requiring businesses to disclose environmental impact, leaders who cannot accurately report this data risk allegations of greenwashing, and fines and reputational damage. Focusing on implementing a standardised reporting framework will ensure businesses are substantiating their green credentials, getting measurement right, and setting in motion steps that will directly lead to long-term impact. Organisations can use this data to redesign products, reuse materials, reduce waste and regenerate natural systems across the supply chain 鈥� in effect, powering the circular economy.

鈥淥ur portfolio means we are well-equipped to support businesses and ensure they are in the best possible position to navigate these challenges in the years ahead. This will allow leaders to unlock further investment, reap the financial rewards of taking sustainability action, comply with changing regulatory requirements, and reach net zero in the future.鈥�

Commenting on the research, Edward Manderson, Lecturer in Environmental Economics at the University of Manchester, said: 鈥淭he connection between sustainability action and financial performance will play a critical role in shaping environmental progress in the future. Over the last few years, academic literature has shown that firms benefit financially from sustainability measures, and SAP鈥檚 research demonstrates that this is indeed a reality for businesses who are looking to recover fast from the pandemic environment. As this research shows, business strategy and sustainability action are now so intertwined that there is simply no excuse for organisations if they fail to address shortcomings in their environmental performance and enact meaningful change.鈥�

For more information about SAP鈥檚 Sustainability Report 2023 .

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LONDON, UK 鈥� 7 September 2023 – (NYSE: SAP) and today announce a visionary new partnership to show how carbon accounting could be standardised for business customers by piloting the recently launched 51风流Sustainability Data Exchange (SDX).

51风流SDX enables BT to collect, trace and share carbon data across its own supplier base, providing unparalleled visibility into the carbon footprint of its business products and services. BT can then share this information directly with business customers when they purchase products through . Furthermore, BT can complement this with data-driven insights from its and to help customers optimise their own IT for both carbon and energy.

Key to the decision to select 51风流SDX was its adherence to the carbon data interoperability standards set by the (PACT), hosted by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD). This means that global and UK business customers do not have to implement their own carbon accounting platforms to calculate, collate and share emissions data. Instead, they simply request it through 51风流SDX for their BT products and services.

BT is sending a strong signal of intent to standardise sustainability reporting across global business customers鈥� value chains to help them聽tackle and drive environmental progress. This will also contribute to the delivery of the pledge to help customers avoid 60 million tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions by 2030.

Sarwar Khan, Global Head of Digital Sustainability, Business, BT, said: 鈥淭ypically, value chain emissions represent a greater proportion of a business鈥� carbon footprint than operational emissions. Tracking, measuring and acting on these and bringing more suppliers and partners on the journey will not just accelerate net-zero targets, but set a new precedent for sustainability reporting. Collaboration fuels progress and access to data is fundamental to getting it right.鈥�

鈥淭he lack of standardisation in sustainability reporting has been a roadblock to progress for too long鈥� commented Ryan Poggi, Managing Director of 51风流UKI. 鈥淭his creates confusion and an inability to validate real change. Our partnership with BT gives us an opportunity to refresh the guidelines and offers a blueprint for a universal standard in sustainability reporting. The aim is to create an environment for organisations to transparently tackle global challenges together.鈥�

51风流SDX merges granular and accurate carbon data with financial transactions on the . It provides businesses with unmatched insights into their environmental footprint and standardises how to communicate learnings and action across value chains. In adopting 51风流SDX, BT can request product-level carbon data from key suppliers for its business customer services, support smaller partners to calculate their carbon footprint and securely share and standardise this information across its value chain. To build scale, BT is working with key partner Cisco to deploy SDX to receive product carbon data for core network devices, simplify and secure data exchange with business customers backed by its global connectivity services, and boost traceability.

The post BT Partners with 51风流to Transform Carbon Emissions Visibility appeared first on 51风流UK News Center.