Proactive Beats Reactive Any Day

As I talk to prospective clients about responsible IT lifecycle management practices, there inevitably comes a moment when I can almost read the person’s mind. Sure, one more layer of regulations for me to worry about. One more layer of burdensome requirements that will drive my costs even higher.

I always go out of my way to allay their fears about added regulation and cost. I tell them that, to the contrary, if you put these smarter, more cost-effective practices into place now, you’re actually likely to save money. Why? Because proactive management is always a preferable way to operate compared to merely reacting to pressures from above and outside.

And make no mistake about it: those pressures are coming. They’ll come from your supply chain, in the form of a major customer mandating environmentally responsible practices from all its vendors (as Wal-Mart and other giants have done). Or, perhaps from your organization’s investors, who apply pressure in the form of migrating away from your stock, in favor of stocks in companies with greener practices.

A number of vehicles now exist for judging companies on their environmental responsibility. Since 1999, the Dow Jones Sustainability Index, for instance, has tracked companies that are leaders in their industries on the issue of sustainability. ISO, the international organization which oversees the familiar corporate quality standards, is also expected to come out with its own sustainability guidelines soon. They would join the Global Reporting Initiative, which now operates as the de facto standards for corporate sustainability. Against that backdrop, thousands of fund managers and millions of individual investors are taking notice, which of course means that top corporate managers must sit up and take notice as well.

So what’s the upshot for you? One way or another, you’ll soon be forced to adjust your internal practices and procedures so as to be more in line with environmental sustainability. Wouldn’t it make sense to proactively drive those changes, rather than be forced to react to them?