SAP Wins 2012 PR News CSR Award for 2010 Sustainability Report

 Newsbyte, Sustainability  Comments Off
Apr 192012
 

WALLDORF — SAP today announced it received the PR News CSR Award for its 2010 sustainability report. The interactive report covers the company’s innovations in the areas of software for energy management and sustainable operations, describes SAP’s efforts to transform into a more sustainable company and illustrates the overall importance of sustainability for businesses worldwide. The report features enhanced capabilities for engaging with readers, from interactive charts and stories of business transformation to a mechanism that allows readers to speak out on what matters to them.

PR News’ CSR Awards is the industry’s best showcase for the most powerful, impactful social responsibility and green campaigns. The finalists in the awards program set new standards of excellence and point the way for other organizations to follow. To learn more, read the PR News CSR Awards special issue [PDF].

“We continue innovating our solutions for customers, our own operations and how we invest in society,” said Peter Graf, chief sustainability officer, SAP. “Our impact has been significant, from helping hundreds of millions of people consume healthy and safe products, to increasing our own energy efficiency for the fifth year in a row, all the way to impacting a million lives through our social investment activities. The ideas and passion of our customers, partners, employees, shareholders and the public are the source of our innovation that turns our vision of helping the world run better and improving people’s lives into a reality. We designed the SAP sustainability report to engage a year-round conversation with our stakeholders by using the report as a conversation starter.”

SAP published its fifth sustainability report in March 2012. Available at www.SAPSustainabilityReport.com, the report is linked and published concurrently with the 2011 Annual Report.

For more information, visit the SAP Newsroom. Follow SAP on Twitter at @sapnews and @sustainableSAP.

Media Contact:
Evan Welsh, SAP, +1 (610) 203-9742, evan.welsh@sap.com, EDT

SAP’s Sustainability Report: Say “Buh-Bye” to Green Washing and Tree Hugging

 Newsbyte  Comments Off
Mar 262012
 

Even though I believe in building a more sustainable future, it comes with a healthy dose of skepticism. Let’s face it, with all of the amazing clean energy progress made with wind, solar and bio-fuels, there’s always major setbacks to spoil the party – like the lukewarm reception to the Chevy Volt for instance.
Toss in accusations of green washing  and tree hugging against those who are trying to make a difference and it’s not hard to see that maybe the world isn’t ready to adopt sustainable best practices. Or is it? Whatever your take is, SAP’S Annual Sustainability Report (now in its fifth year) continues to add much needed clarity around these doubts and challenges.

Sustainability at the Heart of the Business
Because 65-70% of the world’s transactions run on SAP, the company is in the ideal position to nab an accurate pulse on global sustainability initiatives. So what’s the latest prognosis? According to Scott Bolick, Vice President, Sustainability Solution Management for SAP, the aforementioned “storming period” has actually been a good thing for companies. Here’s why, via Scott’s recent blog on Forbes, “Sustainability Now a Strategy, Not Just a Report”:

They are increasingly coalescing on a definition of sustainability that mirrors SAP’s definition – improving short- and long-term profitability by holistically managing economic, societal, and environmental factors. This definition puts sustainability in the heart of the business. Sustainability is seen as strategic lever for operational excellence and differentiation. These initiatives improve profitability by:

  • Driving revenue and competitive advantage by optimizing plants and rapidly developing compliant, sustainable products.
  • Lowering costs by driving down energy consumption and managing compliance effectively.
  • Reducing risks by gaining greater business continuity through risk identification and mitigation.

As many of you know, SAP is no slouch either when it comes to becoming a better steward of the planet.  In 2011, SAP continued to demonstrate its continued commitment to investment and improvement of its solutions, and also remained on track to reduce its carbon emissions to year-2000 levels by 2020 (while SAP’s actual emissions rose over 2010, reflecting growth in overall business, they still fell below the target for the year). And for the first time, SAP measured all of its scope 3 emissions, working closely to develop a new standard with the World Resources Institute.

Is there still a lot of work to be done? Of course. But sustainability is a journey and as the 2011 SAP Sustainability Report proves, a vast majority of companies are in it for the long haul.  That’s why there’s no better time than now to say “buh-bye” to the green washing and tree hugging naysayers.

Varian Medical Expects to Save with SAP

 News  Comments Off
Jan 252012
 

SAP and customer Varian Medical Systems hosted an event, unfortunately we do not have a recording.  The customer spoke about how they are using SAP to support their sustainability and compliance efforts. Varian is doing this by understanding the chemical composition of its products for redesigning them, eliminating hazardous substances and compling with regulations such as RoHS and REACH. 

By re-engineering their products at a much faster pace (down from 18 to five days), Varian is expecting they will save 870,000 annually on ROH-S-related charges alone. In addition, the company can now safeguard its $700 million revenue exposure in the European Union from regulatory fees.

To learn more read the press release.

Brazilian Retailer to Use Cloud-based Solution to Reduce Gas Emissions

 Analytics, News, On Demand, Sustainability  Comments Off
Jan 172012
 

SAP has announced that a leading retailer, The Grupo Pão de Açúcar selected SAP Carbon Impact OnDemand solution.  I found this story interesting to blog about because the retailer is not only a leader in its industry, but also a company recognized as a sustainability leader for retailers in Latin America and globally.  This to me shows that the SAP’s carbon emission solution has what retailers need to track their carbon footprint. 

The Grupo Pão de Açúcar has been committed to sustainability best practices since 2008 by outsourcing the collection and reporting of their sustainability efforts.  With SAP Carbon Impact OnDemand solution the retailer will now bring their reporting efforts in-house to give them better operational control of their reporting efforts. 

Here is a quote from the vice president of The Grupo Pão de Açúcar

“Before selecting SAP Carbon Impact OnDemand, we used an external firm to collect and report on this information,” said Hugo Bethlem, vice president, The Grupo Pão de Açúcar. “The new solution will allow us to bring this process in-house, making it more efficient and providing us with more operational control. We will gain both valuable insight and a robust tool for proactively managing emissions and energy consumption. The Grupo Pão de Açúcar will be one of the first retail companies in Latin America to inventory its carbon emissions. From this measurement, we will be able to create plans to reduce the GHG emissions and carbon footprint of our operations.”

A benefit for selecting an ondemand solution is that the retailer is expected to be up and running with SAP Carbon Impact by early 2012 in 1,832 stores!!!

Read more about the story

Join SAP for a Day of Innovation around a Population of 7 Billion

 Corporate Topics, Sustainability  Comments Off
Oct 132011
 

On October 31 the global population will have reached 7 billion!!!

SAP is partnering with the United Nations Population Fund and The Churchill Club in an event to discuss the IT implications of the increased population.

Read more from a blog post from Natascha Thomson

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Join us October 24, International UN Day, and the official kick-off of the 7-Day Countdown to 7 Billion, for a day of conversations and innovation at SAP.

 HOUSEKEEPING

To participate in this event on Twitter, please use the following hashtags:  #7billion #SAP (always in combination)

To participate on the virtual platform (live streaming), please register here.

  OVERVIEW

The world’s population is slated to top seven billion people on October 31, 2011. This humanitarian milestone represents both an achievement and a challenge, and impacts everyone on the planet. A world of seven billion and beyond has implications for sustainability, urbanization, access to health services and youth empowerment. Companies, governments and non-profits of every size have a role to play to create a healthy and sustainable world for all.

As the United Nations agency responsible for marking this milestone, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) is leading a global initiative—7 Billion Actions—to raise awareness of the opportunities and challenges of a world of seven billion people and beyond.

HOW DOES SAP FIT IN?

SAP is partnering with the UNFPA on the 7 billion actions campaign and hosting an executive roundtable and Innovation Day on October 24th , 2011. This is a unique day bringing together technology experts, designers, business experts, and non-profits at the SAP Palo Alto Labs to co-innovate and design solutions for the next billion.

SAP CSR and SAP Marketing will drive a two part event which is comprised of:

  • Executive Level Roundtable “Innovating for a World of 7 Billion” , co-hosted by UNFPA, Churchill Club and SAP
  • SAP Innovation Jam: Innovating for a World of 7 Billion, sponsored and hosted by SAP in collaboration with UNFPA. (Challenge to participants: how can we leverage technology to provide better youth access to health and education using sustainable business models)

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 SAP Would Like To Help the World Run Better (we hope we are already making a contribution).

Unfortunately the live event is sold out but there might be tickets available at the door on the day.  But to participate from the comfort of your office or home, simply register here:

To participate in this event on Twitter, please use the following hashtags:  #7billion #SAP (always in combination)

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PS:  SAP joined the 7 Billion Actions taskforce of United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) in February 2011. SAP is not a paying sponsor. We are providing in-kind software as well as project expertise, including contributing to the social media campaign.

Natascha Thomson  Active Contributor Gold: 1,500-2,499 points SAP Mentor Part of the Social Media Audience Marketing team at SAP.

SAP Scores Big in Global Sustainability Rankings and Continues Path as Industry Leader

 Corporate Topics, Newsbyte, Sustainability  Comments Off
Sep 142011
 

SAP has scored high marks in the 2011 Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes (DJSI) and Carbon Disclosure Project Global 500 report, advancing its position as a sustainability leader in the software industry. For the fifth consecutive year, SAP has maintained its position as software sector leader in the DJSI. The Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP), an independent not-for-profit organization, named SAP among the top 10 best performing companies in the 2011 edition of the annual Carbon Disclosure Project Global 500 report. Read the newsbyte.

SAP Relief Efforts in Haiti Continues

 Sustainability  Comments Off
Apr 282011
 

Over one year after the Haiti earthquake, SAP continue to provide relief to Haitians to improve their living conditions.  Here’s more information about SAP’s relief efforts in Haiti.

Today SAP has made more significant progress, such as:

 The Grameen Creative Lab Haiti is now fully operational

  • On Tuesday, April 26, SAP will inaugurate the office in Petion-Ville, Haiti
  • Claudine François, a Haitian-born professional with private sector and international development expertise, has been hired to oversee the Lab

SAP is actively recruiting local Haitian entrepreneurs for the following three social business sectors:

  • Nutrition
  • Education (specifically vocational training)
  • Environment and Agricultural

The first social business has passed the due diligence process

  • Cacao fabrication with AYITIKA, which will be set up as an Haitian enterprise 
  •  There are an additional 20 social business ideas/cases in various stages of the due diligence process

At the end of May SAP will host a two-day workshop to recruit entrepreneurs (primarily students and young people) as well as NGOs

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