Industry voice: In defiance of greenhushing - the Circular Services features Computacenter just can’t keep quiet about

Some organisations may be becoming quieter about their sustainability efforts, but Computacenter wants to keep the conversation going

An increased need for transparency and scrutiny, spurred on by the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) and the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD), is driving businesses to enhance their sustainability efforts and make them a key strategic focus. With more than 10,000 companies on board with the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi), it’s clear that measurable, tangible action is the new benchmark.

Computacenter’s customers are increasingly examining their environmental and social impacts. Stakeholders are demanding more, with increased awareness and experience of climate change altering buying behaviours and creating pressure for brands to step up.

But many businesses have started to become more cautious – due in some cases to regional pressure and politics, and in others a fear of scrutiny or accusations of greenwashing. Some are even going quiet about their efforts, a trend being called ‘greenhushing’ – as Computacenter’s Clare Parry-Jones explained in her session at CRN’s recent Sustainability in Tech Summit.

Despite the challenges, businesses are realising that sustainability isn’t just about doing the right thing; it’s also good for the bottom line. So, while the messaging may become more muted, it feels that amongst our customers at least, this isn’t about to become a shift in strategy.

Organisations can help their bottom line through a sustainable approach by engaging a VAR that can provide an end-to-end Device Lifecycle Management (DLM) solution, focusing on maximising value throughout the entire asset lifecycle and helping to manage redundant assets via IT Asset Disposition (ITAD).

Computacenter is unique in its ability to do just that. Our robust Circular Services offering provides customers with a way to extend the life of redundant assets, maximise their value and recycle them sustainably. Organisations can take advantage of this offering without having to loudly announce sustainability initiatives; they can get residual value back from redundant kit, protect their data, and get business benefits with a sustainable outcome.

When it comes to Circular Services, there are certain features Computacenter just can’t keep quiet about:

  1. Our device recovery target
  2. Reduction of environmental impact
  3. Assurance of data security
  4. Maximisation of value release

We’ll be addressing these topics across future articles – but first, let’s focus on our device recovery target: to recover a device for every device we sell.

‘Recovery’ means redeployment, remarketing or recycling through Circular Services. When it comes to devices, we mean main equipment types, including PCs, tablets, switches, servers, monitors, printers and routers.

Last year, Computacenter sold 3.5 million new devices. We recovered 895,000. Whilst we don’t want to reduce the number of new devices we sell, we do want to significantly grow the number we recover. Our target ties in to our DLM offering and sets us apart from our competitors: offering a full DLM solution is a major contributor to how we can continue to increase the number of devices we recover. Our complete offering and growing annual device recovery target mean we can make a bigger impact on helping our customers achieve their sustainability goals.

Our Circular Services offering isn’t just about adding monetary value or lessening risk for our customers; it’s about doing the right thing.

For Computacenter, sustainability isn’t a trend – it’s part of how we work. Find out more here.

This article is sponsored by Computacenter.