Smart businesses are adopting green strategies to drive shareholder value (about 75% of firms with $10 billion in revenues now have a sustainability policy in place, according to The Economist's count).

What does this have to do with green IT? Everything.

If your business has green ambitions, so should IT. To quote management guru Michael Porter:

"Every firm is a collection of activities that are performed to design, produce, market, deliver, and support its product. [Activities] generate cost and create value for buyers; they are the basic units of competitive advantage."

IT is one of Porter's essential business activities. And with green business on the rise, every activity across a firm's value chain is subject to "greening."

We at Forrester like to say, "In the past, your business depended on technology. Now, your business is embodied in technology." This means two things for the role of IT: As always, IT is still a "solid utility" expected to support the business. But going forward, IT is also expected to be a "partner player" to drive business innovation and growth.

Green IT is a poignant example of this symbiotic relationship. If your business has stated green objectives, translate them into actionable goals that green IT can support. If your business has yet to take on green goals, IT should take a leadership role and make the first move.

__________

Doug Washburn is a senior advisor at Forrester Research, where he advises clients on sustainable business and green IT practices and the role of technology in business. He also hosts SLM's Greener IT Update e-newsletter.