According to Jiří Votruba, IBM is closer to our everyday lives than we think—from the data in mobile weather forecasts to enterprise solutions in the cloud. His main message: sustainability should be practical, measurable, and should not hinder efficiency. And technology can help connect responsibility with performance.
ESG: pressure from employees, customers, and regulators
Four groups are pressuring companies today: employees, customers, investors, and the government. Young professionals don’t ask only about salary when joining; they also ask about the company’s social and environmental conduct. Customers require data from the supply chain: an example is Škoda Auto, which asks suppliers (including IBM) for detailed questionnaires on emissions, ethics, and anti-corruption policy. Investors and banks are also assessing ESG profiles even for loans, which is changing the approach to project financing.
Regulatory pressure will intensify with the European CSRD directive, whose timelines have been pushed back, but preparations should already be underway today. In the Czech Republic, a central database of ESG data for banks and insurers is being discussed; companies will thus have to submit verifiable indicators, especially on their carbon footprint. Votruba warns that ESG is not the “new GDPR” to be ticked off in Excel—it is an interconnected system of requirements that will affect business relationships as well as access to money. Therefore, it makes sense to start with a strategy, choose metrics, and prepare for auditable reporting.
Technologies that save resources and reveal connections
Digital solutions help reduce consumption and measure impacts. Intelligent asset management monitors buildings and equipment, uses IoT sensors, and reduces energy consumption—which directly translates into the CO2 footprint. In industry, digital twins and predictive maintenance are applied to reduce downtime and inventories of spare parts. IBM also advocates “responsible computing”: efficient applications and architectures that conserve computing power as well as energy.
An interesting example is the use of NASA satellite data, which IBM links with public records on fires and floods. Artificial intelligence searches these massive datasets for patterns—for example, dry periods preceding fires—without tracking individuals (it works with a grid of approximately 20 × 20 km). An open “foundation” model has also been created, which can be further trained for specific tasks, for example in smart agriculture. The goal remains the same: to put data to practical use for better decisions and transparent ESG reporting.
