How Green Does Your IT Grow?
Michael R. Wood is a Business Process Improvement & IT Strategist Independent Consultant. He is creator of the business process-improvement methodology called HELIX and founder of The Natural Intelligence Group, a strategy, process improvement and technology consulting company. He is also a CPA, has served as an Adjunct Professor in Pepperdine's Management MBA program, an Associate Professor at California Lutheran University, and on the boards of numerous professional organizations. Mr. Wood is a sought after presenter of HELIX workshops and seminars in both the U.S. and Europe.
"Going Green" is gaining steam for 2011. From consumer goods to enterprise-wide initiatives, the rush is on. Environmental sustainability seems to be what it is all about these days, even in the face of the longest recession in modern history.
For most organizations, IT is ripe with green opportunities. IT suppliers like CISCO, HP, IBM, Fujitsu, Hitachi and others all offer “green” solutions. But “going green" (i.e., implementing an environmentally sustainable computing environment) doesn’t always need to start with investing in new technologies. Adopting traditional energy conservation practices can provide immediate savings with next to zero investments other than an investment in discipline.
The USDA, in its published “Green IT Strategic Plan” identifies a broad range of areas for energy conservation and new green investments including the following:
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Initiative |
No Investment Required |
Investment Required |
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Increase Energy Efficiency |
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"It is an important and popular fact that things are not always what they seem. For instance, on the planet Earth, man had always assumed that he was more intelligent than dolphins because he had achieved so much -- the wheel, New York, wars and so on -- whilst all the dolphins had ever done was muck about in the water having a good time. But conversely, the dolphins had always believed that they were far more intelligent than man -- for precisely the same reasons." - Douglas Adams |
