Sustainability and Small Business

Small businesses have a somewhat different business case for sustainability initiatives in general and green IT is no exception.  Small businesses have a unique set of challenges and opportunities that can actually make the transition to sustainability much quicker.

For smaller businesses there are two special considerations when looking at sustainability initiatives; cash flow and flexibility.

Cash Flow
Small businesses are often really concerned with cash flow thus any initiative that can reduce the amount of cash outflow required in the short term is welcome.  Reducing energy consumption provides immediate cost savings and cost very little to implement.  On the other hand, any initiative that would require a large outlay of cash may be less practical (for example, large scale equipment refresh programs).  In large data centers, the energy savings are often used to help create the business case for upgrading equipment.  In small organizations, the costs savings may not be enough to justify purchasing new equipment.  Long term planning and calculated investments are ideal for a small business.

Flexibility
In small organizations, educational efforts (such as duplex printing and document sharing) and changes to operating procedures (such as updating workstations weekly rather than daily to allow computers to be shut off overnight) can have the biggest effects on environmental performance. 

IT managers in small organizations also tend to have more control over purchasing policies and can include environmental and social criteria without having to convince a whole organization this is the way to go. Small organizations have the opportunity to take a more strategic (sustainable) approach to extend the lifespan of existing hardware and to include requirements for new hardware in future plans rather than for immediate replacement.   

Overall, small businesses have an opportunity to incorporate Green IT in the overall IT strategy.

Are you wondering how to implement Green IT practices in your small business?  Check out our Green IT Guide and Toolkit for more information.