Building A Digitally-Resilient World – The Time To Act Is Now
We are now living in very different times.
Emerging from the shadows of the Covid-19 pandemic, which has disrupted our way of life and accelerated the pace of digitalization for many countries, governments, and companies, we are confronted with another, arguably graver, challenge – Sustainability.
Many, including climate change researchers and government leaders, have called this the single biggest issue we have had to grapple with. And as the saying goes, “cometh the hour, cometh the man”. It is our responsibility to lead by example and effect change from within.
It has not been all doom and gloom. Amid the chaos and disruption, there have also been positive impacts on the awareness and actions related to sustainability. Let me share a few examples:
§ Consumers are becoming more aware and conscious of the environmental and social consequences of their choices. They are increasingly expecting businesses to conduct their business sustainably and be proactive about social change. For example, in Singapore, shoppers will soon have to pay a mandatory charge of at least five cents for every single plastic bag they use when doing their grocery shopping at supermarkets.
§ Employees, especially millennials and Gen-Zs, who already make up more than half of the current global workforce, are looking to work with companies that demonstrate sustainability in their business.
§ Youths are demanding bold action to address climate change, exemplified by the irrepressible Swedish environmental activist Greta Thunberg. We clearly heard them at COP26 last year.
§ Investors are focusing on the better performance and resilience of companies that are purpose-led in their pursuit of balanced ESG strategies.
For my peers and me at Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), sustainability is the next Digital. We see many benefits the intersection of Sustainability and Digital can bring to organizations worldwide.
That is why TCS decided to work with the University of Auckland to create the world’s first in-depth Digital Sustainability Index (DSI), which is focused on the Asia Pacific as a call to action for companies to start or join important conversations on the convergence of digital transformation and sustainability.
What is digital sustainability & why does it matter?
Quite simply, Digital Sustainability refers to the way a company’s digital assets, processes and ways of working contribute to sustainability across social, environmental, and financial outcomes. The DSI highlights the Digital Sustainability readiness and maturity of companies, and what can be done to make it a part of every company’s DNA to build future resilience.
I believe the uptake of Digital Sustainability is not a question of ‘if’, but ‘when’. Why? Because not only is Digital Sustainability beneficial to society and the planet, it also enables companies to create future-fit and connected businesses that deliver measurable value across key stakeholder groups.
For us at TCS, we believe every business is now a technology company and every organization now has an opportunity to put on a sustainability lens on their digital transformation agenda to measure business and sustainability outcomes.
How will companies benefit from the Digital Sustainability Index?
At TCS, we are pursuing sustainability as an integrated part of our growth and transformation strategy. In the Asia Pacific, where we have a presence in 12 countries, we had said we will take two markets and two delivery centers outside India and make them carbon neutral by 2025. I am glad to share that in FY22, all of TCS APAC became carbon neutral, three years ahead of our stated target, and we have also undergone third-party certification as per the prevailing ISO standards.
Beyond this achievement, we believe with a rapid increase in digital transformation initiatives and AI-based applications, it is imperative to include energy used for software development and related operations to get a holistic view of the organization’s carbon footprint and build a sustainable business model.
As a leader, I’m optimistic that we can create a paradigm shift in the way we live, work and play. Digital Sustainability is a perspective, an ethos, a mindset shift, and a set of solutions. Just as digital is an enabler of transformation, we believe there is an opportunity to leverage digital to accelerate sustainable outcomes and to understand how organizations might create, use, and regulate digital transformation, innovation, and resources to deliver value for society today, and in the future.
Embrace a digital sustainability mindset
I believe digital has the power to positively change the world and digital sustainability is an enabler for all, no matter what country you are from, what sector you work in, or how big you are.
Asia is on a slow trajectory to meet its sustainability targets, but I believe if we commit to being transparent and having high levels of disclosure and mutual trust with our stakeholders, we can still be optimistic about our collective future.
At the same time, it will take a multi-stakeholder approach to deliver the equitable outcome that the world needs. The more stakeholders who come on board, and work together towards shared outcomes, the greater our chances of success.
*The author is Girish Ramachandran President, TCS Asia Pacific
