Never mind the carbon footprint, consider the bottom line
But, ironically, that misapprehension illustrates the whole point of sustainability – most particularly as it applies to those who are immersed in the day-to-day business of implementing SAP software solutions.
Let me explain that.
Call it the Law of Unintended Consequences. The impact of the big idea of sustainability is to empower and enable practical and sensible measures.
Here’s an example: sustainability in architecture is giving rise to office environments, which are simply a lot nicer to work in. Measures to lower the overall consumption footprint of buildings is making them warmer in winter and cooler in summer, with better use of natural light, better air quality, more pleasing aesthetics, and much higher durability. And, as it turns out, these green buildings are boosting productivity and staff retention for employers, delivering a higher return on investment for property developers – and of course saving the planet with a smaller carbon footprint.
This paradigm is now having its effect on the world of SAP software implementation. I’m not talking here of software that enables a company to measure and monitor its progress towards achieving sustainable business goals. Rather, the new stimulus and the new credibility that the wider argument of sustainability provides is enabling practical and sensible changes to how we approach the job of delivering better value in the implementation of business software.
Not so long ago a Big Bang SAP implementation, involving busloads of consultants and truck loads of money was the next best thing. Today, the way forward is not a Big Bang, but rather small but constant combustion. We don’t want to design and build a new wheel, but rather embed the painfully learned lessons of the past into pre-configured software and get steady forward momentum through multiple small, manageable and non-disruptive projects, with low risk, lower cost and better value.
By following a program approach that delivers business benefits in an iterative process the chance of success is improved and the potential for a program that goes forever and delivers little is reduced.
That may not sound very exciting, until you call it what it is: sustainable software implementation. It’s the business software equivalent of a green building: people are more productive and staff retention is improved, IT budgets go further and deliver better business value. Of course, quarterly results improve. Oh, and by the way, there’s a smaller carbon footprint.
The UN World Commission on Environment and Development, set up in 1983, first introduced the idea of sustainable development, which it famously defined as development that “meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”.
In keeping with the spirit of this definition, the SAP consulting and implementation community needs to give up Big Bang thinking, which is not meeting the present needs of customers. We need to adopt a more sustainable approach that delivers better value and which doesn’t compromise the credibility and viability of our business in the future.
Article written by Stuart Dickinson, GM Consulting Australia, Oxygen
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