Embracing sustainability is so much more than a corporate social responsibility metric. Across the world, governments and corporations have set targets for reaching carbon neutrality within the next three decades. Matching the timeframe set by the Paris Agreement, companies across all sectors – from retail and technology, to manufacturing and packaging – are aiming for net zero emissions by 2050.
This is also true of the energy and utilities sectors. Today, these organisations are taking a closer look at what needs to change in order to enhance sustainability – but most aren’t going far enough. In order to set and reach meaningful net zero goals, they need to actively reshape their value model.
How? By understanding customer usage – and by learning from customers how to develop holistic, connected, and sustainable models. So, what lessons can we learn on the path to net zero?
1. Set trusted metrics and report on them transparently
Transparency and accountability are key. This means establishing metrics that effectively assess your performance. These can be external – the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) runs a global disclosure system for nations, regions, and companies to evaluate their environmental impacts – or internal to your organisation.
It also means building solid reporting capabilities at the heart of your operations. With a complete, data-rich platform that evaluates your customers, business, and operations, you’ll have a centralised view of what to deliver, improve upon, or change.
2. Prioritise asset transformation
An end-to-end, insight-rich platform will also be vital for making operational decisions. With the right information at hand, you can quickly identify which assets to change or divest – and when – as you reduce your emissions.
3. Empower your customers so you can follow their lead
With a digital platform, you’ll also be able to better engage with your customers and set them up for success. By reviewing customer activities and behaviours, you can tailor touchpoints and empower them to make sustainable energy choices. In this way, the energy and utilities providers that choose to build their operations around their customers – not their product offerings – will be able to follow suit and drive sustainable change for their organisation.
4. Establish the foundation for smarter systems
Energy retailers have an opportunity to power smarter environments for their customers (at home or in the workplace) by taking advantage of energy-efficient equipment, renewable energy sources, and data-enabled technology. And with the added layer of customer data, you can make informed decisions around how to deploy these systems.
Take ENGIE, for example. Using the Salesforce 360 customer relationship management (CRM) system they were able to get a single view of each customer – allowing them to deploy a customer-centric business model of providing zero-carbon transition solutions.
5. Build relevant and sustainable commercial models
Creating connected and blended energy models that are built around your customers’ needs will be key on the journey towards net zero emissions.
In practice, this means developing more integrated business cases – such as grid-scale batteries, connected energy models that incorporate e-mobility, and renewables – into a complete offering.
The world has set itself a challenge to reduce emissions and embrace innovative solutions that drive sustainability. It’s time that organisations across energy and utilities become actively involved in this pursuit. You can find out more about how Salesforce is enabling energy and utilities organisations to prepare for a sustainable future here.
