Sustainable IT strategy: development of a holistic green IT concept

L-Bank planned to align its IT with sustainability criteria in order to minimise the ecological footprint of its IT infrastructure. The goal was to develop a green IT concept that combines environmental performance, efficiency and governance. Until now, there was a lack of established structures and standardised methods for systematically analysing and optimising the environmental impact of its IT.

Sustainability is an essential framework condition for the strategic orientation of L-Bank as the development bank of the state of Baden-Württemberg. By committing to the principles of the EMAS environmental management system, the bank is pursuing ambitious sustainability goals. Against this background, L-Bank commissioned adesso to develop a comprehensive green IT concept that takes equal account of ecological and economic aspects.

• Strategic framework: L-Bank's IT is an important driver of sustainability efforts. The goal was to create a clearly structured, realistic and at the same time effective roadmap for the implementation of Green IT. This project was strategically anchored in the business, sustainability and IT strategies of L-Bank in order to align IT with sustainability goals in the long term.
• Materiality and complexity: L-Bank pursues a holistic approach to sustainability management, to which all organisational units contribute – including IT. As banking IT contributes to the ecological footprint, sustainable IT is not only a necessary part of the environmental strategy, but also a key success factor for the organisation as a whole. At the same time, banks face the challenge of operating complex IT landscapes and meeting strict regulatory requirements.
• Cost-effectiveness and trends: Sustainable IT must not only make ecological sense, but also be economically efficient. In view of the increasing use of IT and the integration of modern technologies such as artificial intelligence, the need for sustainable IT solutions is becoming ever more pressing.

adesso has developed a comprehensive green IT concept for L-Bank and supported L-Bank in the following activities:

• Comprehensive analysis: evaluation of the internal and external environment, the status quo and the existing processes, organisation, culture and technology.
• Strategic planning: definition of scoping, objectives, stakeholder analysis, vision, mission and key performance indicators (KPIs).
• Development of a target operating model: structuring of the future Green IT operating model, taking into account sustainability and economic efficiency.
• Deriving and prioritising measures: concrete recommendations for action were prioritised according to criteria such as effort, costs, ecological impact, etc.
• Quick wins and implementation support: the first measures that could be implemented quickly were initiated during the project in order to achieve immediately visible results.

• High level of acceptance: All relevant stakeholders were involved through early and transparent communication.
• Efficient development: The concept was developed efficiently and in a targeted manner by using existing adesso assets, such as an extensive library of evaluated measures.
• Concrete implementation plans: The measures have been developed in detail and can be implemented through a comprehensive technical concept.
• Transparency: A complete and clear picture of the expected costs facilitates planning and implementation.
• Target achievement: The Green IT concept directly contributes to L-Bank's existing sustainability indicators.
• Sustainability of implementation: The continuity and controllability of the measures has already been anchored in the concept, ensuring a long-term impact.

L-Bank's Green IT concept provides decisive impetus for a sustainable transformation of IT and creates a strategic basis for long-term ecological and economic success. With a clear roadmap and a structured approach, measures are prioritised that achieve both quickly realisable results and sustainable changes. The concept combines improved governance with the identification of concrete optimisation potential and shows how IT can act as a driver for sustainability. With this approach, L-Bank is positioning itself as a pioneer in sustainable IT solutions and creating a balance between responsibility and efficiency. Implementing the concept not only shows short-term success, but also ensures the basis for continuous further development in line with the growing demands on responsible IT.