Green IT

ACC 626Tifa Han

What is Green IT?

• Environmentally sustainable IT– Reducing operating cost and capital cost– Lessening environmental impact

• Commonly Done Through: Vitalizing Servers, Purchasing Energy-efficient Models of Computers…

Why does Green IT fail?

• 2009 Columbus Survey: most of the companies received marks between 32% ~ 37%

Green IT Failure

Limited Scope of the Projects

Green-Washing

Misunderstanding of Green IT Objectives

Limited Scope of the Projects

• Many companies only implemented the Green IT projects to reduce data-center and desktop energy expenditures

• Never took any comprehensive approach• Failed to bring Green IT to a corporate level

Green-Washing

• Green-washing: direct limited effort towards the actual reduction in energy waste yet focusing on the advertisement of the sustainability initiatives

• Consumers felt deceived and manipulated• Companies fail to disclose or consider hidden

trade-offs– Example: Cisco and Verizon advocated companies to

produce their own primary electricity from fossil fuel; less energy cost -> more environmental footprint

Misunderstanding of the Objectives

• Companies inexperienced with Green IT may rush into projects without examining the implications

1.8 tons of raw materials and 240 kilograms of fossil fuel to produce a new server

Result: energy waste and environmental hazard

Failed to consider the life-cycle of the servers: manufacture, transportation, disposal

Missing Link

Intel: refreshes servers over 4 yearsObjective: Change into new energy-efficient models

Value of Green IT

Cost Reduction

Maximizing Return

Public Recognition

• Power Cost• Capital Cost

• Asset Disposal• Legislative

Mechanism

• Shareholder Value

Cost Reduction

• Power and cooling cost• Virtualization• Asset Life Extension

Maximizing Return

• Asset Disposal:– Re-use or re-sell– Can hire Dell, HP, Intechra, Redemtech to do it– WellPoint, Inc. received $49,000 in the first

quarter of 2008 by employing Intechra to dispose and resell its retired IT assets

• Legislative Mechanism– Incentives and penalties – Amount can be significant

Public Recognition

• 2007 EY study: significant positive relation between performance management and the ROE, but not shareholder value

• May be due to miscommunication • Deloitte study shows companies do not communicate the

environmental progress properly to shareholders

• Likely to have significant relation if disclosed properly

Best Practice of Green IT

Green IT Success

Expand the Green IT Realm

Align Green IT with Corporate

Strategic Directions

Develop Metrics and Reporting

Structures

Expanding the Green IT Realm

Asset Lifecycle

Asset Selection

System MaximizationProper Disposal

-Meet environmental standards- Certified products

-Life extension- Mid-life refurbishment

-Reuse-Resell

Aligning Green IT with Corporate Strategic Directions

• Create cross-functional Green IT projects• Intelligent buildings, e-business, airflow configuration…

Develop Metrics and Reporting Structures

Prioritizing Investments

Establish a Baseline

Regular Evaluation of the Green IT

Progress

Create accountability through good governance

Conclusion

Green IT is the future trend of the IT world, and it can create great values for not only the company but also the general society if it is

designed and implemented properly.