This is a ChannelVision Magazine Publication.

CHANNEL MANAGEMENT I n today’s world, sustainability is a crucial issue for all industries, but it is especially important in technology sector. The tech sector, after all, is a large contributor to world energy usage; datacentres currently consume about 2 percent of worldwide electricity, with the figure set to reach 8 percent by 2030, according to figures compiled by Nature . The industry is becoming more aware of this problem, though, and com- panies are committing to greater sustain- ability, such as Google and Apple, which have committed to 100% renewable electricity by 2020. Concerns around sustainability don’t just stop at a compa- ny’s own workforce, though, but extend to its wider supply and value chains. Making the channel more sustainable is challenging, but one way to do this is to encourage sustainability in the same way sales performance is encouraged: through acknowledgement and celebra- tion of your team’s efforts and rewards. Indeed, the channel doesn’t exist in a vacuum. In the same way that consumer expectations are shaping businesses’ efforts to be sustainable, many partners are looking for vendors that share their values. As consumer values become shaped by environmental issues, it goes without saying that channel partners’ values will be shaped in the same way. And as vendors become more sustain- able, partners become more sustainable too, and will increasingly admire sustain- ability. This feedback loop ensures both vendors and partners are prioritising sustainability, in turn creating a more at- tractive organization for end users. UpdatingWorkplace Culture Consider, for instances, that more than 27 percent of millennials surveyed by Deloitte think businesses should try to improve and protect the planet, but only 12 percent believe that companies are actually doing so. Not that workplace changes have to be huge. Incremental changes are just as valuable. For instance, some businesses can place water fountains in offices in lieu of plastic bottles. Bigger change options include banning Styrofoam from an office entirely or going paperless. Sustainability in the office is not al - ways enough, though, and to consolidate change companies must think of their wider supply chains. One way companies can improve sustainability in the channel is by building sustainability into channel part- ner performance metrics using smart data. Vendors are now using online reward plat- forms with APIs that allow them to connect to other platforms and track everything from sustainability to sales performance across vast partner ecosystems. As in incentive programs tailored toward sales performance, data can be used to record and reward sustainable practice. For instance, vendors can en- courage channel partners to log when they have acted sustainably at work and award these practices with points, which can then be redeemed for rewards. These practices, though, do not have to simply be related to sustain- ability in the workplace. Companies could also marry work and personal goals for employees’ targets. Wider workforce behaviour data could also reveal new employee trends such as a preference for sustainable rewards, enabling companies to build rewards around these preferences. Although travel in the current cli- mate is not recommended, it’s true that business travel makes up for 73 percent of the carbon footprint around corporate events, and up to 50 per- cent of a company’s CO2 output. Even beyond travelling, however, sustain- ability can be encouraged by making conferences and events more sustain- able. For instance, corporate events can move toward recyclable materials, such as note-pads made from apple peel, recyclable badges or biodegrad- able smoothie carts. Some companies are even using gamification techniques to drive sustain - ability, with corporations using digital “treasure hunts” involving XR codes to encourage conference attendees to navigate conferences with mobile apps. Digitalizing events eliminates entirely the need altogether for travel and materials. Sustainability is only going to grow in importance for companies, so it’s key that organizations aim to improve sus- tainability in the wider channel ecosys- tem as well. There’s a multitude of ways to do this, particularly through data and working to change workplace culture. By improving sustainability in the chan- nel, companies can reduce carbon footprint and encourages workers to live more sustainably, pushing toward a more sustainable future. o Dan Kelly is vice president of strategic accounts and partnerships at CR Worldwide. Fostering a Sustainable Channel Ecosystem By Dan Kelly 38 CHANNEL VISION | May - June, 2020