What is the single most important thing that every business needs today? Well, people might give diverse answers, but the best one is sustainability. Sustainability is a broad concept that covers virtually everything, from governance to social issues of a business. It is so crucial today that it has become part of compliance requirements for most organizations.
In Hong Kong, your firm cannot be listed or traded at Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEX) without showing its efforts on sustainability.
A lot of businesses have taken to sustainability and are looking forward to using it not just for compliance but as a stepping stone for rapid growth in their industries. Take the example of the United States. Over 90% of SPX 500 gives annual sustainability reports to comply with NYSE and NASDAQ exchanges requirements. This is why you, too, should not be left behind, and to do this; you require the best sustainability software. In this post, we will tell you everything you need to know about sustainability apps.
A Brief History of Sustainability
Before we can look at the best sustainability software, let's start by going back to understand the roots of sustainability. Sustainability can be traced back to 1992, when the first United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNICED) was held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
At this point, the member states agreed that the previous approach of looking at the environment separately from development was not the right one. However, it was the next summits, especially the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) held in 2002 in South Africa that showed the importance of sustainability in running companies (What is ESG Reporting?).
After WSSD, more stakeholders, not just the UN member states, started embracing sustainability, which culminated in the current efforts on sustainability reporting. For example, it has now been demonstrated that the current challenges facing the globe, from global warming to regional conflicts, can be addressed if all stakeholders focus on sustainability (all about GRI Standards). .
As a company manager or entrepreneur, you also have a role to play to promote this noble course of sustainability.
What You Need to Think about when it Comes to Sustainability
To manage sustainability correctly, you need two things; understanding sustainability and having the best sustainability software. On sustainability, the most effective way of looking at it is following the core areas of ESG reporting because they cover everything your company needs.
- Environment: This simply means the nature that surrounds us. In sustainability terms, you need to ensure that your company’s operations do not have negative implications on the environment. Also, you can target addressing the already reported issues in the environment, such as helping to counter global warming or funding the restoration of forests. Make sure the efforts you take are quantifiable and verifiable. Do you know how to calculate carbon emissions?
- Social: This is all about people. This dimension of sustainability seeks to help address issues that affect society. So, your company should start at home, by ensuring that staff issues, working conditions, and everything about them are taken care of well. You should also extend to the larger society and focus on promoting social justice, supporting education programs, and empowerment programs.
- Governance: Governance focuses on the management of your brand and seeks to identify strategies and resources allocation to areas that promote profitability without damaging the environment. When working on your sustainability plan, governance is very important in driving your firm to the next level.
How to Pick the Best Sustainability Program
Now that you know why sustainability is so important in organizations, the next question is “how do you identify the best?” Here are some expert tips to consider:
- Only select a program that is easy to use with your system.
- The software should make it easy to automate sustainability reporting.
- Should be secure enough to guarantee your company of data safety.
- If your company reaches a point where it needs to grow, perhaps create more branches or products, the software should be easy to scale.
- Comes with good customer support to help address issues that might arise in the course of its application.
Using the Best Sustainability Software in Your Firm
When you acquire the right sustainability management software, it could be all that you need to simplify the process of management and ESG sustainability. How the program works will depend on the selected program, but let’s look at one of the best, Diginex sustainability software.
With Diginex sustainability software, the process of sustainability management is easy and convenient. The program is pretty easy to use and works well with most company management systems. So, all you need to do is install it in your system to get started. Make sure also to identify the preferred courses of action to promote sustainability. So, you might want to start with a materiality assessment to identify specific reporting topics that are of interest to stakeholders (find your ESG consultant here).
These are the areas, such as waste treatment and cutting down emissions that you need to focus on.
The lovely thing about Diginex sustainability software is that it allows you to identify and give access rights only to persons who are responsible for sustainability management. For example, the person in charge of the production area, team leader, human resources manager, and top leadership might be granted access to add or manipulate data.
If you are unsure of how to use the program, Diginex support is always there to help. They have good professionals and support staff who can guide you on how to optimize the program and reach the targeted success. With Diginex sustainability software, you can also:
● Analyze data
● Create regular reports
● Set clear sustainability reporting benchmarks
● Use it to review your company's sustainability and management operations
Whether your company or organization is small or very large, its sustainability effort is very important. Although acquiring the best sustainability software and the entire ESG reporting might come at a cost, the benefits will be worth the effort. Indeed, it is becoming a compliance issue and you better be prepared. So, visit Diginex to see their sustainability programs now.
