In today’s technology-driven business environment, companies are constantly being bombarded with new virtual tools and platforms that are peddled as cost-effective strategies to gain a competitive edge and enhance outputs. In response, CIOs often bloat their budgets and purchase the latest and greatest in enterprise technology, without first exploring where existing inefficiencies lie. As a result, rather than becoming more efficient, enterprise IT simply becomes more expensive. Tim James, director at SustainableIT, says inefficient IT systems are the norm rather than the exception in SA. He points to energy wastage as an example. “Anecdotally, I would say that as many as four out of five large corporates still keep their PCs on 24/7, or at the very least don’t actively shut them down with the requisite tooling,” he says. “This is largely due to IT departments’ reluctance to modify existing behaviours.”

Driving efficiency with data management