To achieve this, the GRI continually improves and builds capacity around the use of the GRI's Sustainability Reporting Framework, currently the de facto global standard in sustainability reporting and built on the Sustainability Reporting Guidelines. According to Wikipedia, almost 1000 organizations from more than 60 countries disclose their sustainability performance with reference to the GRI guidelines.

An AMR Research survey reported earlier this year that within the next two years 89 percent of companies in the US and 62 percent in Europe plan to use technology to manage their corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives. It also found that while environmental issues are of prime importance in Europe, US firms seem to be ahead in the integration of CSR-related data systems. Currently, 47 percent of European companies either gain no CSR-related data from IT systems or have numerous disconnected systems, compared to just 19 percent in the same position in the US. Nearly half of US companies (49 percent) claim to have some or fully integrated systems to provide information on CSR topics.

"What CIOs should expect from their business application providers are really the tools to bring together the fragmented programs that they're trying to manage today into an integrated dashboard that would allow the CIO and decision makers across the company to better manage their CSR and green business practice in a more integrated manner," Lawson Software's Frank says.

Alan Perkins, former CIO of Australian company Altium, says CIOs should aspire to as close to perfect information as possible. "The more unity, timeliness, accuracy and relevance in the information captured and provided to decision makers and users, the greater the efficiencies," Perkins says. "This will result in focusing attention on contributing to society and profit-making. Get the efficiencies right and you will be able to focus on doing the right things.

"For example, GE has come up with a new device called the eco-dashboard that is designed to let home owners know how much energy and water they are using and how trends track over time. Since the unit also doubles as their thermostat and central port for all their home systems (like security, and so on), it can help people learn how to conserve and how much they are conserving. Taking this logic to the workplace can be the start of changing behaviour."

Sidebar: Clean Up Your Act

Start taking action today
Jeff Neyland, CIO of Intechra, a $US100 million information technology asset disposition company, recommends other CIOs adopt some of the steps he and his organization have taken to help clean up their organization's environmental act.

1. Set specific internal recycling goals and objectives and measure them annually with reduced levels targeted each year.

2. Buy energy-efficient equipment when purchasing. Seek lower power and lower heat output, which can be significant for servers and other devices.

3. Purchase recycled IT equipment when possible. Reuse is among the most environmentally responsible practices available to individuals and organizations.

4. Set power consumption guidelines for energy conservation using Windows power management options.

5. Reduce water runoff and solid waste generation. Build energy efficiencies in plant operations. For example, Intechra's Los Angeles facility operates recycle machinery on the third shift only — this conserves energy and is non-peak for the utility company. Intechra has also built practices that have allowed its facilities to be ISO certified for environmental management.

   - S BUSHELL

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