01 Jun 2009

Environmental responsibility 'important to firms'

Green IT strategies are becoming increasingly important to senior-level IT executives because of cost reductions and environmental responsibility, a new report has revealed.

The 2009 Green IT Report from Symantec said while going green to save money is still popular, there is an increasing awareness of improving the environmental credentials of an organisation.

Indeed, smaller businesses which want to remain competitive during the recession may find that moving toward greener IT procedures makes them more attractive to energy-efficient conscious customers.

According to 97 per cent of respondents, they are currently discussing green IT strategies, whilst reducing electricity consumption was a central driver to justifying environmentally-friendly solutions.

Commenting on the findings, Jose Iglesias, vice-president of Global Solutions at Symantec Corporation, stated: "Over the past 12 months, IT has emerged as a new driving force in implementing green initiatives - not only for energy savings benefits, but also as a result of widespread desire to implement environmentally responsible practices."

Microsoft has reported that the average server wastes 30 to 40 per cent of its power.