InformationWeek Analytics Green IT Final Report

December 2008
The Eco-Enterprise And

The Reality Of Green IT
Analytics Report
Wild price swings in the energy market and Al Gore have likely raised the green
concept to your CEO’s desk. This InformationWeek Analytics Report will provide a
high-level overview of the state of green initiatives within IT, helping you assess
your current footprint and the options available and plan for new challenges.
By Michael Healey
InformationWeek Analytics Reports

Green IT 2
TA B L E O F C O N T E N T S
4 Author’s Bio
5 Executive Summary
6 Research Synopsis
7 Taming IT Energy Hogs
7 Beyond Pulling Plugs
9 Impact Assessment
11 Think Broad
12 Procurement Strategies
16 Data Management
17 Virtualization
20 Talking Trash
20 Green Checklist
21 End User Management
23 What’s The Government Up To?
26 Data Center Redesign
27 Measuring Success
29 Appendix
December 2008 © 2008 InformationWeek, Reproduction Prohibited

Green IT 3
TA B L E O F C O N T E N T S
7 Figure 1: ROI Vital When Evaluating Green IT
8 Figure 2: Power Use, Energy-Saving Features Top Requirements

10 Figure 3: Many On The Road To Green
11 Figure 4: Data Center Modifications Needed
11 Figure 5: Green IT Marketing Not Yet Common

12 Figure 6: Monitor Purchases Primary Area Of Change
13 Figure 7: Sustainability Processes Not Top Of Mind
14 Figure 8: Most Have Desktop Power-Saving Policy
15 Figure 9: Perception Of U.S. Green IT Progress Split
16 Figure 10: Consolidation, Virtualization Most Popular
17 Figure 11: Most Factor In Green Benefits
18 Figure 12: Chief Energy Officer Not Popular
18 Figure 13: CEO, Executive Management Primary Drivers Of Green Initiatives
19 Figure 14: Many Seek Environmentally Friendly Alternatives
21 Figure 15: Many Feel Their Companies Are On Par, Ahead
22 Figure 16: E-Waste Programs Not Pervasive
24 Figure 17: Power Saving For Servers Common

25 Figure 18: Most In Favor Of Carbon Emission Cap And Trade System
25 Figure 19: Few Measure Carbon Footprint
26 Figure 20: Green IT Messaging Generally Clear
27 Figure 21: Standardized Measurements Important To Green IT Adoption
28 Figure 22: Importance Of Green IT Predicted To Grow
29 Figure 23: Company Revenue

29 Figure 24: Company Size
30 Figure 25: Industry
31 Figure 26: Job Title

Green IT 4
Michael Healey is the chief technology officer at GreenPages

Technology Solutions (www.greenpages.com). He has over 20
years experience in technology and software integration. Mike
previously served as president of network integrator TENCorp,
which was acquired by GreenPages in 2006. As lead technologist
he oversees both the application development and implementa-
tion teams. GreenPages provides project integration, develop-
ment, and support services to commercial, education, and health
care clients, averaging almost 100 projects annually. Prior to
founding TENCorp, Mike was an international project manager for
Nixdorf Computer and a Notes consultant for Sandpoint Corp.
Mike has taught courses at MIT Lowell Institute and Northeastern

and has served on the Educational Board of Advisers for several
schools and universities throughout New England. He has a BA in
operations management from the University of Massachusetts
Amherst and an MBA from Babson College.

Green IT 5
Executive Summary
Are our vaunted green IT initiatives really just ROI-based business decisions wrapped
in environmentally friendly packaging? How far are we really willing to go for princi-
ple? As the economy slows, will the truly green initiatives that focus on the broader
environment and cost a bit—or a lot—more be swept aside by bottom-line-driven cut-
backs, regardless of their positive impact on the planet?
Don’t bet your carbon credits on IT sticking to its green guns: A mere 12% of the 419
business technology professionals we surveyed for this report say they’d be willing to
pay more for a greener product. Unless these higher-cost initiatives become govern-
ment mandates, good green intentions will be no match for red ink on a budget bal-
ance sheet.
For the majority of firms, IT has yet to face that choice; green IT initiatives have thus
far been primarily focused on reducing power consumption in overburdened data
centers, in large part by virtualizing servers. Being able to cite this as a major achieve-
ment in the organization’s effort to be more environmentally friendly is a side benefit.
But truly going green is not nearly that simple. Yes, technologists have driven
advances across all industries, including many that reduce carbon emissions by
enabling remote workers, even championing video telecommunications. But let’s not
pat ourselves on the back too hard: Electronic manufacturing still produces toxic and
hazardous by-products, and the waste from old systems leaves lead, mercury, and
other nasty stuff in our landfills.
The nascent green IT movement is in for some tumultuous times. As the economy
slows, there will be an increasing focus on the ROI of all investments, green or other-
wise. Meanwhile, the changing of the guard in Washington signals a resurgence of
pure green initiatives that unquestionably will add costs, especially those regulating
electronic waste and requiring vendors to produce more environmentally friendly sys-
tems. These aren’t complementary forces. In this report we’ll help IT professionals
sort out the current green landscape and see where their peers are today, decide
where they realistically can be in a year, and look ahead to what’s on the horizon.

Green IT 6
Research Synopsis
Survey Name: InformationWeek Analytics Green IT Survey
Survey Date: September 2008
Region: North America
Number of Respondents: 419
Purpose:
To determine and capture the interest in the role of green IT in enterprises.
Methodology:
InformationWeek Analytics surveyed business technology decision-makers at North
American companies. The survey was conducted online, and respondents were
recruited via an e-mail invitation containing an embedded link to the survey. The
e-mail invitation was sent to qualified InformationWeek subscribers.

Green IT 7
Taming IT Energy Hogs

According to the EPA, the energy consumed by U.S. commercial and industrial buildings is
responsible for nearly 50 percent of our national emissions of greenhouse gases, and within
those buildings, the power used by data centers has doubled over the past five years. Combine
that growth with the fact that the national average rate for electricity has jumped 44% since
2004, and it’s easy to see why new, more efficient data center designs and virtualization-centric
networks are required elements of enterprises’ business expansion plans.
At the same time, the “green for green’s sake” movement has advanced beyond the fad stage,
into the mainstream IT budgeting and strategy discussion at a significant number of companies.
“We have to consider what we do and what we make and how it impacts our world,” says the
CTO at a media company. “A good energy policy is good foreign policy, and it’s good for the envi-
ronment and future generations.”
Even poll respondents who say they’re skeptical about whether humans are causing global
warming say “going green” is economically beneficial and ethically responsible. In all, about half
of the business technology professionals surveyed in our InformationWeek Analytics poll for this
report either have formal green IT policies or are in the process of developing them. The largest
group, 39%, lack formal polices but are doing ad-hoc green adoption. The rest? Let’s just say we
won’t release their addresses to the Sierra Club.
BEYOND PULLING PLUGS

Green IT is about more than just power consumption. It incorporates the entire environmental
impact of technology, from the paper we load in our high-end networked printers to the haz-
ardous e-waste we throw away. However, if the United States, and indeed the world, experiences
a prolonged recession, will many of our green IT initiative die an “economy induced” death?
Figure 1
ROI Vital When Evaluating Green IT

Please rate the importance of the following criteria when evaluating green alternatives to current technology.
3.90
Hard ROI/economic benefit
3.84
Technology benefit
3.69
Impact on environment
3.65
Ability to conform to corporate directives
Note: Mean averages based on a 5-point scale, where 1 is “not at all important” and 5 is “very important”
Data: InformationWeek Analytics Green IT Survey of 419 business technology professionals
Green IT_Chart_2
Green IT 8
Sure, the ROI benefits of increased efficiency will live on, if not grow, in a slowing economy, but
will organizations pay more for greener IT?
Probably not. In our InformationWeek Analytics survey of 419 business technology professionals,
hard ROI was rated as the most important criterion for evaluating green alternatives. Impact on
the environment? It rated just slightly higher than the ability to conform to corporate directives
and below technology benefit. When it comes to purchasing requirements, the top ranked green
Figure 2

Green IT 9
feature was power consumption; the lowest ranking was whether or not a sustainable manufac-
turing process was used. Several respondents we spoke with said they fully expect recessionary
concerns to push green initiatives to the back burner in 2009 and possibly into 2010. It doesn’t
help that vendors are mostly perceived as unable or unwilling to provide accurate energy-con-
sumption metrics for their products, in a form that allows for comparisons.
“The key driver for our organization in evaluating and adopting green technologies is more for
the inherent cost savings and reduced TCO associated, and less for the fact that it’s ‘green,’” says
the director of IS architecture for a $1 billion-plus healthcare/medical company, who told us he’s
a huge adopter of green living at home and would love to evaluate similar technologies for his
organization. “The fact that a given solution is green is nice and a great blurb in the business
case, but not a major driving reason. I would prefer vendors approached me as, ‘This is cheaper
and oh by the way, it's green.’ First and foremost, it must be cost effective.”
So what’s an environmentally aware IT staff to do? Green rally in the cubicle? Sit-ins outside
the data center? Almost all of the business technology professionals we surveyed feel they
understand the issues and look to green alternatives as a way of life. More than 40% say that
Impact Assessment: Green IT

Benefit Risk
IT Greener IT isn’t always going to be the It’s not always easy to vet vendors’ green
Organization easiest route, but we expect regulation of energy usage claims. For example, replacing desktop PCs with thin
and e-waste disposal to increase, and getting out ahead clients and a virtual desktop infrastructure seems more
of regulation is always a good thing. efficient at first glance, but the back-end server require-
ments could easily negate upfront savings.
Business Green initiatives will often save money The main risk of initiatives such as allow-
Organization ing telework, curtailing travel, or setting desktops to hi-
over the long term, and employees generally like the
idea of pitching in to save the planet. Videoconferencing bernate is lost productivity. Not everyone can work or
and telework are two examples of popular initiatives. collaborate effectively remotely, and selectively allowing
telework could hurt morale.
Business More and more consumers are looking Competitively, there’s little risk around
Competitiveness green initiatives.
to do business with environmentally responsible part-
ners; even in a tough economy, a certified green busi-
ness plan could be a differentiator.
Bottom Line
When looking to hire top candidates, especially recent graduates, being able to highlight green initiatives is often a sig-
nificant selling point. IT can help by working to put in place a wide range of programs, from reducing paper consump-
tion to encouraging secure remote access to responsibly disposing of e-waste.
Note: Number of dots indicate level of benefit and risk; one dot equals low benefit/risk and five equals high benefit/risk

Green IT 10
they drive their personal behavior to green alternatives, even if it means paying more. However,
especially when budgets are tight, that’s a nonstarter for most organizations.
Still, you can make the case for greener alternatives—it’s simply a matter of knowing your
organization, and putting that business insight and access to the executive suite to work. In fact,
only 26% of respondents listed IT or the CIO as the main drivers of green initiatives; the No. 1
champion is the CEO or another nontechnology executive, at 32%. These folks have a rare
opportunity to leverage the hard ROI benefits the CFO likes with the behavior-changing prac-
tices that users will tolerate to make your organization greener.
If you’re in one of those organizations where C-level execs don’t care about green, you’re going
to have to take a more creative, possibly even subversive, approach. One director at a global
telecommunications firm describes his senior management’s environmental awareness as “clue-
less” and notes that the company’s green program is solely focused on the economic benefits of
a project emphasizing virtualization, power savings, and data center efficiency, with barely a
mention of the green benefits.
If that sounds like your situation, look at it as an opportunity for IT to take a visionary, yet prac-
tical, stance. As we discuss in our Impact Assessment, on the previous page, green can go hand-
in-hand with cost savings and business advancement. Poll respondents told us they’re using
previous dramatic increases in energy costs; discussion of pending regulations, especially in
cases where their organizations do business in Europe; implementation of process analysis; and
waste elimination/reduction programs, including favoring digital data distribution over hard
copies, as factors to sell energy conservation plans. Regardless of your organization’s stance,
Figure 3
Many On The Road To Green
Where is your organization in adopting an official green policy?
The only thing green in our data We’ve had a policy in place
center is some blinking light for more than one year
12%
19%
10% We’ve had a policy in place

for less than one year
39%
No plans yet to adopt a formal
policy; ad hoc adoption 20%
of green techniques
We’re in the process
of developing a policy
Green IT_Chart_1
Green IT 11
we’ll look at some major elements of various green initiatives and how they can be blended into
a detailed action plan.
THINK BROAD
There has been a massive focus on the data center and server side of green technology. This is
partially due to the focus cast on the data center by the government-mandated EPA study and
Figure 4
Data Center Modifications Needed
To take advantage of energy-efficient technologies, will your data center…?
Need major modifications

bordering on complete redesign
21%
54%
Need some structural 25%
modifications Require no modifications
Figure 5
Green ITGreen
Marketing Not Yet Common
IT_Chart_21
Do you have an internal or external marketing or communication program to promote
or educate your staff or customers on your green initiatives?
Yes
44%
56%
No
Base: 369 respondents with green policies or practices


Green IT_Chart_3
Green IT 12
upcoming Energy Star rankings for servers and data centers, partly due to the additional opera-
tional and financial benefits achieved through virtualization.
Don’t focus solely here, however. There are plenty of areas in which you can make a major
impact while furthering your overall IT mission. What are the top items to review beyond all the
flavors of virtualization and data center redesign? How about procurement strategies, e-waste,
data management, and end user management.
PROCUREMENT STRATEGIES
To be sure, power consumption should not be your sole decision point when selecting a PC or
server. But going green on equipment purchases is more difficult than folks realize: Simply
Figure 6
Monitor Purchases Primary Area Of Change
What programs or purchasing plans have been changed to accommodate green initiatives?
48%
Monitor purchases
38%
Virtualization
34%
Printer purchases
33%
Desktop purchases
32%
Printer maintenance (cost-per-page programs)
31%
Server purchases
27%
HVAC/data center design
18%
SAN/NAS storage purchases
10%
Services contracts (cloud, SaaS)
9%
Vendor authorization programs; we require vendors to have a formal environmental/green policy
as a precursor to working with our organization
6%
Other
26%
None; we haven't made any changes to accommodate “go green” initiatives
Note: Multiple responses allowed
Green IT_Chart_4
Green IT 13
comparing details on what impact a given product has on the environment is a significant chal-
lenge because of a lack of consistent tools and metrics. The government’s Energy Star rating, for
example, covers only desktops, monitors, and laptops, with some limited information on printers.
And even when the info is available, it’s not always used. Many organizations that we’ve worked
with skip the power evaluation as part of a desktop or monitor selection process, focusing solely
on the traditional speeds and feeds. Too bad—there are some big differences out there in power
usage.
Take popular 19-inch LCD monitors. An NEC MultiSync LCD1990SX uses a paltry .08 watts
when powered off, 31.7 watts when active. Contrast that with a Dell E198FP, which sucks up 1
watt when powered off and 33 watts when active. As for workstations, a Lenovo ThinkCentre
A61 will draw 2.67 watts off, 4.18 watts when in sleep mode. Compare that with most of Dell’s
OptiPlex 755 devices, which draw only .56 watts off and 2.47 watts in sleep mode. Small differ-
ences? Not when you’ve got 1,000-plus of these power hogs running overnight.
Still, you need to do your homework; the more significant the power savings, the more expen-
sive the monitor, even if they have the same specs. For example, take the Dell 1908FP and the
SE197FP. Both have the same general features, but the 1908 consumes 31% less power when in
use and 52% less power when in sleep mode.
But don’t cut the PO yet: The 1908’s street price is about $284, versus the SE197’s $139. How
long would it take you to make up the savings? More than 10 years, based on the EPA’s lifecycle
Figure 7
Sustainability Processes Not Top Of Mind

Does your company vet vendors on sustainable manufacturing processes?
Yes, we require
a sustainable process
We don’t check vendors’ 7%

sustainability processes Yes, we prefer it, and will pay
51% a little extra for their products
12%
30%
We prefer it, but not if it costs more
Green IT_Chart_5
Green IT 14
cost estimator, assuming the national average of 10.68 cents per kilowatt hour. That’s a problem
for most. “Green technology needs to be cost effective,” says a typical poll respondent. “We will
not pay more unless the energy savings will pay for the difference within 24 months.”
Once we move beyond power consumption, it becomes even more difficult to get objective
details for comparison. For desktops, laptops, and monitors we recommend using the Electronic
Product Environment Assessment Tool, or EPEAT, which compiles rankings and reports for
materials used, lifecycle design, removal of known materials that can cause an environmental
impact, and even packaging; check it out at epeat.net.
Unfortunately, not all device makers participate, and not all models are listed. However, it’s a
great analysis tool when looking at the differences between models and manufacturers and the
environmental impact of each device. For example, the lead content in displays and systems
varies between monitor and notebook brand, with some meeting the compliance guidelines,
while others definitely do not.
One drawback is that EPEAT presents data as reported by vendors; no audit capabilities exist.
And, getting agreement on what’s allowed in a product is a slippery slope. Mercury-free batter-
ies have been implemented by almost all manufacturers, but you still need some level of mercu-
ry for LCD monitors. There are some general standards, but compliance is optional as it relates
to the EPEAT ranking.
To get a more rigorous rating, particularly in terms of material usage and vendors that have sus-
Figure 8
Most Have Desktop Power-Saving Policy
Do you have a policy to use power-saving modes on desktops?
Yes, for most systems

No
29%
34%
13% 24%
Yes, for a few systems Yes, for all systems
Green IT_Chart_6
Green IT 15
tainable manufacturing processes, you could start digging and working directly with gear mak-
ers—or, you could look to our European counterparts.
The German “Blue Angel” rating (blauer-engel.de/en/) has been around for more than 30 years.
Computers must not only be low power, they can use only certain plastics, polymers, and com-
ponents. While there are various monitor and printer manufacturers with the certification, only
two system builders opted to meet the specs: Seimens Computer and Cherry Gmbh, not exactly
powerhouses in the desktop market.
Why so few? Implementing a fully sustainable manufacturing process for technology products
is challenging. Vendors can, and often do, use recycled plastics, eliminate banned substances,
and design more modular product lines. However, the fact is we’re talking about fabricated
chips, printed circuit boards, processed metals, and a mish-mash of plastics. Hydrofluoric acid,
lead, mercury, and a variety of toxic materials are typically needed in the manufacturing
process. In fact, the EPA lists more than 120 air emissions and liquid or solid wastes that may be
part of technology-centric manufacturing processes—not exactly the stuff of Rachel Carson’s
dreams.
Is it realistic that manufacturers will become more eco-friendly? Most operate on razor-thin
margins, and the bulk of their manufacturing tends to be overseas, where in some cases, EPA-
level guidelines and enforcement just don’t exist. The only way it will happen is if customers
demand it; for now, while only 7% of our poll respondents require that their manufacturers veri-
fy some level of environmental compliance or sustainable manufacturing, we expect that num-
Figure 9
Perception Of U.S. Green IT Progress Split
How do you think U.S. companies compare with their peers in other
developed countries with regard to green IT initiatives?
Way behind
13%
Behind Don’t know
33% 9%
5% Way ahead
18%
22% Ahead
About the same
Green IT_Chart_12
Green IT 16
ber to grow as federal government mandates for purchasing EPEAT-registered product pur-
chases become mainstream. Is that an early Obama move? Power play by the Democratic-con-
trolled Congress? Nope. Last January, President Bush signed an executive order requiring the
federal government to purchase 95% EPEAT-registered products. The order stops short of man-
dating gold- or silver-certified products, but the onus is now on the manufacturers. If you want
to sell to the feds, you’ve got to report your environmental details to EPEAT.
Poll respondents had plenty to say on the United States’ green status as compared with Europe.
“I just returned from Europe, Germany specifically,” says one IT pro. “We here in the U.S. are
way behind in green initiatives.” Another adds: “Visits to Sweden make it very clear that the U.S.
is way behind the Europeans in addressing green in many areas. One item is hotel rooms that
shut off all power consumption when your hotel card key is removed from a slot, so there is
minimal power used when rooms are vacant.”
DATA MANAGEMENT
The fact that enterprise storage requirements are exploding is not news. But the fact is, the
environmental impact is largely ignored. Storage relies on drives; drives require spindles and
platters that must have constant power for data access. SANs are immense energy hogs. Randy
Weiss, senior data management engineer at GreenPages, calculates that a 3-TB SAN optimized
for a production environment, with dual controllers and 30 or more drives, will not only con-
sume 400 watts to 650 watts of power but will throw off 1,900 BTUs to 2,500 BTUs per hour,
spiking cooling costs.
IT can reduce overall power and environmental controls usage by employing data deduplication
and introducing lower-cost tiered storage into the mix. Estimates vary, but our experience sug-
gests that most organizations regularly back up 25% to 35% duplicate data.
Figure 10
Consolidation, Virtualization Most Popular

Which of the following virtualization initiatives have been implemented at your organization?
57%
Server consolidation
30%
Storage virtualization
24%
Application virtualization
22%
Desktop replacement, VDI
29%
None of the above
Note: Multiple responses allowed
Green IT_Chart_8
Green IT 17
Deduplication technologies are primarily focused on backup and archiving, but vendors such
as Data Domain, FalconStor, and ExaGrid have found a number of willing adopters among stor-
age administrators weary of adding ever more hardware to their data centers. The old adage
“disk is cheap” may be true, but the energy to power and cool all that metal assuredly isn’t.
Most justify the cost of dedupe technology based on reduced backup media and capital outlays
for archived storage. However, you should make sure you factor in annual savings related to
power and cooling.
Fibre Channel-centric shops should revisit their iSCSI initiatives. Most of the reluctance to
adopt iSCSI has thus far centered on performance differences between the two. However, iSCSI
systems are often built using lower-powered SATA drives, providing a more efficient power
footprint. They’re also less expensive than Tier 1 storage, aiding the TCO argument.
We’re also keeping an eye on the massive array of idle disks, or MAID, architecture. The concept
is simple: Provide energy savings by putting unused disks into standby mode, firing them up
only as needed. It’s in the early stages, but vendors such as Copan Systems and Nexsan
Technologies are pushing green benefits today. Copan promises an average 75% savings in
power and cooling costs.
Nexsan’s and Copan’s offerings have focused on the controllers and system for power savings,
spinning down or slowing drives based on data requests. Hitachi Data Systems and Seagate are
going further, pushing the power-saving design down to the drives themselves. The newer drives
now have multiple power state settings and associated spindle speeds that are activated based
on the I/O activity that’s occurring on that specific drive. It’s more than just the traditional
Figure 11
Most Factor In Green Benefits
How prominently did the green benefits of virtualization figure in your decision process?
Minor factor, expected

some power savings
48% Very minor factor, added
as a footnote to the project
15%
13%
Not a factor
4%
20%
Major factor Main reason we virtualized
Base: 297 respondents who have implemented virtualization

December 2008
Green IT_Chart_9
© 2008 InformationWeek, Reproduction Prohibited
Green IT 18
wake/sleep mode; you can have as many as seven different power rates, depending on drive
model, letting you cut power without (in theory) reducing end-user perception of performance.
VIRTUALIZATION
We’ll call it out now: Virtualization isn’t about being green, and we all know it. Sure, the green
effect is a great side benefit, but it’s not the driver. Most poll respondents list green as a minor
Figure 12
Chief Energy Officer Not Popular
Do you think having a Chief Energy Officer is or would be valuable to your company?
Don’t know
23%
60% 17%
No Yes
Figure 13
Green IT_Chart_16
CEO, Executive Management Primary Drivers Of Green Initiatives
Who or what is the biggest driver of green initiatives within your organization?
It’s all PR; we want to be CEO or other non-IT executive

able to tout green cred
9% 32%
Outside drivers, for example,
government mandate or
a specific customer’s 10%
bid requirement
9%
CIO
23%
General employees 17%
IT staff

December 2008
Green IT_Chart_10
Green IT 19
factor in the decision process, with 76% saying it was a minor or non-factor in the decision to
virtualize.
Leveraging our favorite web.archive.org, we checked back on the messages put out by VMware,
XenSource, and Virtual Iron and found almost no mention of green benefits on their Web sites
prior to 2007. After that? Call it the “Gore glow.”
So how does virtualization play within an overall green strategy? Its ROI is almost undisputed
at the server and storage levels, but green benefits still aren’t necessarily the driver.
Case in point is the Cambridge Housing Authority, in Cambridge, Mass. Located in one of the
hotbeds of the environmental movement, CHA has an extensive green program that includes
the installation of solar panels in its buildings, paper and waste recycling, and an education
series for residents on conserving energy. They even have a dedicated person working on green
initiatives who is empowered to bring in IT resources as needed.
The CHA recently implemented a server and desktop virtualization project to streamline opera-
tions and better support its 18 remote sites. “The environmental impact did factor into our
thought process, but it was more about the management and other benefits of virtualization,”
says Pranita Amarasinghe, the CHA’s director of administration and policy. “Power savings
wasn’t a core driver, it was more of a side benefit.” Still, Amarasinghe says she’s seen savings.
Our poll respondents agree server virtualization is a no brainer, with almost 60% already imple-
menting. The question is, can IT move down the stack to include desktop and application virtu-
Figure 14
Many Seek Environmentally Friendly Alternatives

How would you rate your personal—meaning non-work-related—approach to going green?
I don’t worry about it
I understand issues and look 8%

I am a strong green advocate
to green alternatives that and will take a green alternative
seem reasonable even if it means being
51% 12% inconvenienced or paying
much more
29%
I drive as much of my activity
as possible toward environmentally
friendly purchases and behavior
Green IT_Chart_11
Green IT 20
alization as part of a broader green program? The answer isn’t quite as clear. Sure, a running
thin client typically uses 10 watts to 20 watts versus 80 watts to 120 watts for an active desktop.
However, you have to maintain a back-end server and storage array to support all those thin
clients, plus you will still have users who require standard desktops and laptops. For now, it’s
definitely better to focus on the management and support benefits of desktop and application
virtualization. The bigger savings are rooted there.
TALKING TRASH
Proper disposal of technology equipment is a largely ignored area in many organizations. In
fact, only 33% of our poll respondents have programs in place to deal with e-waste, yet the EPA
estimates that 40% of the lead found in U.S. landfills comes from electronic components, despite
these components making up only 2% of all solid waste.
While there is no current federal mandate specifically for electronics, 18 states now have laws
on the books regarding disposal and recycling. While many focus on manufacturers and the dis-
Green Evaluation Criteria

We recommend giving all new initiatives ratings based on these five areas. They’ll
help bring total ROI and green benefits into clearer focus:
Power Saving ROI: Power usage is the most visible part of the green ROI mix. How
much pure power savings does an initiative deliver? You can get an updated list of
power ratings for most PCs and printers at: energystar.gov/index.cfm?
fuseaction=find_a_product.showProductCategory&pcw_code=OE
More details on Energy Star for Buildings is at: energystar.gov/index.cfm?

c=evaluate_performance.bus_portfoliomanager_intro
Productivity ROI: It’s not all about energy savings; some technologies, especially server
virtualization, introduce time savings for IT staff. On the other hand, end user pro-
ductivity is more of a mixed bag. Hibernating or powered-off PCs can slow users
down, but videoconferencing may be a productivity booster.
Environmental Impact: Moving beyond power, assess how the initiative may help the
environment. Yes, this is a soft metric, but worth including.
Upfront Cost: Does this save money upfront, or does it cost more in the short or long
term? If so, how long before we break even?
User Receptiveness: Will people embrace this initiative or fight it? One of the biggest
challenges of any program is whether or not employees will buy in. Education is key.

Green IT 21
posal of monitors, California has broadened the scope and modeled its rules based on the EU’s
RoHS (Restriction of Hazardous Substances), giving the state the flexibility to add components
and systems as new technologies are introduced. In fact, the Europeans have been on top of the
electronic waste challenge since 2003, with directives requiring separate collection and treat-
ment of electronics. Initial conservation goals were raised in 2006 and are expected to rise again
in the coming year. Any company that sells electronic products or components to EU countries,
even indirectly, is subject to RoHS.
Our advice? Don’t let new rules around e-waste sneak up on you. President-elect Obama has
identified retooling the EPA as one of his major environmental initiatives. In addition, a growing
number of states (including in California and Maine) have “recycling fees” attached to the sale
of systems. Good for the environment, plus a way to generate revenue in a down economy—
that’s green ROI, government style, and we expect to see more states follow suit.
END USER MANAGEMENT

IT groups hate to take on end users’ bad habits—even something as simple as setting PCs to
hibernate after a certain period of idleness is certain to elicit a flood of support desk calls and
complaints. Thus we weren’t surprised that fully one in three survey respondents have yet to
put a power-saving policy in place for desktops.
Wake up and set the Wayback machine to 1998—that feature has existed for more than a
decade. You don’t have to go all Ed Begley Jr. and shut systems down after 30 seconds, but sim-
ple tweaks, like a blank screen saver and setting drives to power down overnight, will not only
Figure 15
Many Feel Their Companies Are On Par, Ahead

How do you think your company compares with others in your industry with regard to green IT initiatives?
Behind Way behind
21% 8% Don’t know

7%
Way ahead
5%
20%
39% Ahead
About the same
Green IT_Chart_13
Green IT 22
save power, they’ll decrease wear and tear on machines. End users won’t do it themselves unless
the business invests in training and awareness. In fact, a study by the Lawrence Berkeley
National Labs found that 80% of users disabled some or all of their power-saving settings within
90 days—even the employees who have a fit about someone throwing a Mountain Dew can in
the regular trash sometimes take perverse pride in subverting IT.
The time has come to engage in this fight. If you’ve got the CEO’s backing, go for the full run—
take on employee’s bad habits on both the desktop and printer. All major desktop management
packages, including not only those from stalwarts like Altiris, Verdiem, and Scriptlogic but also
offerings from SaaS vendors Big Fix and Triumfant, offer some level of power management.
Those without desktop management suites can accomplish the task using just Group Policies
and open-source power management options such as EZ GPO for Windows XP. Vista makes the
process even easier.
Choose your sleep times carefully. Most green organizations, including the EPA, recommend
hibernation or stand-by mode after 30 or 60 minutes of inactivity. Unfortunately, these typically
don’t factor in the wake-up time and its impact on users. A large New England educational
institution we worked with scrapped its sleep mode during school hours because of the impact
it was having on labs. Machines would go into hibernation between classes, then delay students
during wake-up. With a limited amount of lab time available, the school opted to keep PCs
awake during school hours, hibernating at night.
Note that screen savers not only don’t save screens, they actually use more energy than sleep
Figure 16
E-Waste Programs Not Pervasive
Does your company have an e-waste program?
Don’t know
24%
Yes
33%
43%
No
Green IT_Chart_14
Green IT 23
What’s The Government Up To?

Back in December 2006, Congress passed an act requiring the EPA to study and report
back on the power usage and growth of data centers and enterprise servers. This report
included recommendations for cost savings, ratings systems, and incentives for energy
conservation.
From that study, the EPA and the Department of Energy have been working on two major
initiatives that will impact all IT professionals. The first is an Energy Star rating for data
centers. The EPA has signed up more than 120 data centers to assist with the collection of
data that will serve as the basis of the rating. The goal is to create a standard energy effi-
ciency benchmark—think of it as MPG for your data center.
Energy Star ratings are also in the works for servers: The EPA is currently working
through the process of creating these, with the biggest issues revolving around the meas-
urement and rating of idle power consumption.
However, nearly all major vendors, including HP, Dell, and IBM, have raised concerns
regarding how the EPA will rate and rank power consumption. In addition, the standards
won’t factor in virtualization platforms or vendor power management systems. The EPA
says it felt it would be too difficult to write technology-neutral requirements, and the actu-
al power savings would be heavily dependent on end user configuration. The EPA will
require manufacturers to report power management features and virtualization capabili-
ties as part of the standard information reporting requirements when the standard is
finally ratified, sometime next year.
Judging by the public comments left on the EPA’s site by major manufacturers, we get the
sense there’s no desire to move quickly. The public comments are all very formal and
polite, but lots of “strongly disagrees” and “mistakes will be made” are peppered through-
out the carefully crafted letters. It’s a bit like a royal family chat room: “Pardon me, but you
don’t know jack about blade servers, sir.”
Why the big emphasis on ratings? The environmentalist in the crowd will point out that a
standardized rating lets folks share best practices and compare their efficiency to better
protect the environment. The libertarians will be just as quick to point out that a standard
rating of a data center sets the required foundation for creating a carbon tax or other type
of fee system for inefficient energy consumers. Should the government be involved in
such a program? Our survey group was mixed on the effectiveness of this kind of pro-
gram, with 20% feeling it’s absolutely necessary and 17% saying absolutely not.
Love it or hate it, one thing is for sure: While the process is slow, it’s steady and will even-
tually result in measurements, which are often a precursor for caps and fees. Like it or
not, you better get green.

Green IT 24
mode, and can even keep the CPU running vs. going into sleep mode according to policy. Again,
zapping all the Dilbert of the Day screen savers won’t make you popular, but by switching to a
power-saving mode on the monitor, you’ll save $25 to $30 per year per LCD, or almost $60 per
year if you’re still using CRTs. Letting your system actually go to sleep at night will save $59 per
year on average; even without shutting the units off.
Do you need to shut off and unplug? The Department of Energy estimates that 5% of all power
consumed in the United States is via devices that are turned off, but still plugged in. That’s an
amazing 64 million megawatts of electricity. However, organizations need to factor in lost pro-
ductivity time during daily cold boots. If a worker takes 10 minutes to boot up, you may lose
more in productivity than you save with a power off and unplug vs. sleep mode. Once you’ve got
the power saving tackled, keep going—push your desktop control program beyond power sav-
ing, to take back the printer and paper usage. Most desktop management applications can con-
trol a variety of print features, including standard printing modes and paper margins. Simply
setting the default printing for draft black-and-white mode and forcing users to change the
defaults for higher quality will save you 20% to 25% on toner or ink, depending on the printer.
The notion of globally changing margins is also gaining some buzz. The standard Microsoft mar-
gins are 1.25 inches. Writer Tamara Krinsky came up with the idea of changing margins to .75
inches and is pushing Microsoft to make it the default for Office going forward, via her site,
changethemargins.com. Sure, sounds like a small thing, but internally, it’s a fairly easy group
policy setting you can do with most desktop management suites or the standard Microsoft
Group Policy Manager with the free Office Group Policy templates. And while it won’t save a
fortune in paper costs, it does help set the tone for a broader print and paper management pro-
Figure 17
Power Saving For Servers Common

Do you use any power-saving options on your servers?
No
37% Yes, for all servers
15%
18%
Yes, for most servers
30%
Yes, for some servers
Green IT_Chart_7
Green IT 25
gram that would include reducing the default print quality on documents, even restricting the
use of high-resolution printing. “Staff education is key,” says one respondent. “Know your gov-
ernment regulations. Involve non-IT departments in the process. Involve non-IT equipment into
the e-waste program. Stay on top of new technology and replace to benefit the environment.”
And not all green initiatives that affect employees will be uphill battles. Telework programs are
gaining in popularity, for good reason. Reducing travel via installing videoconferencing systems
Figure 18
Most In Favor Of Carbon Emission Cap And Trade System

Do you think the government should implement a carbon emission cap and trade system?
Absolutely not, it’s not

the government's job Absolutely
17% 20%
Probably not, the government 22%

will likely screw it up
41%
Probably, depending on details
Figure 19
Green IT_Chart_15
Few Measure Carbon Footprint
Are the tools available for you to measure your organization’s carbon footprint adequate?
Don’t know Tools are generally adequate
19% 7%
Tools are adequate
for certain uses, such
as data center
15%
15%
44% Tools are generally inadequate
Can’t say; we haven’t
investigated any
December 2008 Green IT_Chart_20

Green IT 26
can increase collaboration and deliver good ROI. “We invested in HD videoconferencing and
have found a huge portion of corporate interest linked to green initiatives to decrease the car-
bon footprint,” says one poll respondent. We’re sure the savings on travel added to the interest.
DATA CENTER REDESIGN

Today, there’s almost no way any new data center isn’t being built leveraging all the core ele-
ments of a green initiative—everything from blade servers to the physical infrastructure. Vendors
have updated their best practices, and consortiums such as the GreenGrid have established
design standards for getting the most out of our data center power and cooling investments.
But what about those who don’t have the luxury of building new facilities? Three in four of our
survey respondents feel they’ll need structural modifications if they hope to take advantage of
energy-efficient technologies. Short answer, you better have your ROI calculator ready for justi-
fying new cooling gear. If your HVAC system is more than seven years old, it’s worth looking at a
replacement. Many older units don’t have an economize mode, missing those free-cool-air days
or nights. In addition, some date centers’ earlier designs were haphazard at best and failed to
create the proper flow from heat to cool.
The Government’s National Data Center Energy Efficiency Information Program is still in its
infancy, but it promises standardized energy ratings for data centers, like those standard MPG
stickers on cars, just stuck to the side of your data center; (see checklist, page 20, for a link). In
the meantime, you can gauge your efficiency level by sharing data with the U.S. government’s
Energy Star Rating program for buildings and facilities. This program, which covers banks, hos-
pitals, offices, and warehouses in addition to data centers, provides you with a rating in compar-
Figure 20
Green IT Messaging Generally Clear

Do you find green technology messaging from manufacturers generally…?
Contradictory; vendors need

to do more work here
Confusing; I ignore it
29%
9%
Haven’t come across any

11%
6%
Clear and helpful in making
purchasing decisions
45%
Clear, if somewhat self-serving
Green IT_Chart_18
Green IT 27
ison with a group of similar buildings throughout the United States. You supply the building
details, including square footage, operating hours, and industry-specific detail, and you get a
comparison with peers. Not only do you gain insight into your overall power consumption com-
pared with your competition, the top sites earn an Energy Star certification.
MEASURING SUCCESS
One of the most difficult challenges to a broad green initiative is measuring your success. The
electric bill is the easiest metric for cost savings, but what about the broader carbon footprint
and efficiency measurements? Almost everyone we spoke with for this report agrees these types
of tools are needed, but only 7% find them adequate. And vendors don’t necessarily help—most
of our poll respondents felt that while the green messaging may be loud, it was often self serv-
ing and contradictory.
Clearly, there’s still a long way to go. A surprising 26% of our respondents say they haven’t done
anything to be greener—not even changing their purchasing programs. In addition, there’s defi-
nitely concern about the purity of vendors’ initiatives and motivation. “Standards are needed to
ensure vendors aren't twisting their numbers to their advantage,” says one respondent. “How
can you tell a vendor isn’t fudging?”
“I’m interested in real solutions that improve upon the industry best practices I am already
using and provide real ROI, not just the ability to say “I’m green,’” says another, who adds that
green buzzwords are overused or used incorrectly by marketing types who are mainly interested
in attracting sales.
Figure 21
Standardized Measurements Important To Green IT Adoption
How important are standardized, explicit energy efficiency measurements
in getting your company to adopt a greener technology stance?
Not important
12%
Somewhat important
49% You mean there are
9% such measurements?
30%
Very important
Green IT_Chart_19
Green IT 28
A lack of strong U.S. government mandates leaves the broader green strategy up to individual
organizations. Thing is, we’ve had many of the tools to increase efficiency available to us for
years, but few have taken advantage. The price of power and the continued growth of concen-
trated data centers will be major driving factors in business decisions, whether the business has
a green initiative or not.
You can also expect the government stance to change with the new administration. Reducing
energy costs is still a major driver for both government and business, but the change to a
Democratic-controlled federal government will definitely see a rise in focus on broader environ-
mental issues, especially relating to e-waste.
For organizations looking to help the environment, education and training are core elements of
success. Surprisingly, of the folks who reported they have a green policy, over 50% lack a formal
communication program to educate their staffs and customers. That’s a missed opportunity.
Conversely, a breakdown of policy and training can often result in frustration, stalled projects, or
huge missteps that extend beyond IT.
“There are nice blue recycling baskets by every desk,” says one IT director who asked to remain
nameless. “The trouble is, nobody told the cleaning people that they aren't supposed to dump
the contents in with the rest of the trash.”
Pranita from Massachusetts’ CHA summed up her recommendations: “Executive team support
is very important. When we come up with ideas, they are supportive. They need to be willing to
take a longer run view of the cost savings, particularly for broader projects. We definitely look to
go green. What shade of green depends upon funding.”
Figure 22
Importance Of Green IT Predicted To Grow
Do you think the importance that companies place on green IT will…?
Stay the same
14%
Continue to strengthen
72%
10% Fade within the next few years
4%
Don’t know
Green IT_Chart_17
Green IT 29
Appendix
Figure 23
Company Revenue
Which of the following dollar ranges includes the annual revenue of your entire organization?
Less than $6 million $6 million to $49.9 million

23% 14%
$50 million to $99.9 million

7%
Don’t know/decline to say 14%

11%
$100 million to $499.9 million
7% 6%
Government/Non-profit 9% 9% $500 million to $999.9 million
$5 billion or more $1 billion to $4.9 billion
Figure 24 Green IT_Chart_24

Company Size
Approximately how many employees are in your organization?
Less than 50
23%
10,000 or more
19% 50-99
8%
9% 16%
5,000-9,999 100-499
18% 7%
1,000-4,999 500-999
Green IT_Chart_26

Green IT 30
Figure 25
Industry
What is your organization’s primary industry?
4% 7%
Construction/engineering Healthcare/medical
10% 1%
Consulting and business services Hospitality/travel
1% 3%
Consumer goods Insurance/HMOs
1% 7%
Distributor IT vendors
7% 2%
Education Logistics/transportation
2% 9%
Electronics Manufacturing/industrial, non-computer
1% 3%
Energy Media/entertainment
6% 2%
Financial services/banking Non-profit
1% 3%
Financial services/insurance Retail/e-commerce
3% 4%
Financial services/other Telecommunications/ISPs
2% 1%
Financial services/securities and investments Utilities
1% 9%
Food/beverage Other
10%
Government
Green IT_Chart_25

Green IT 31
Figure 26
Job Title
Which of the following best describes your job title?
29%
IT/IS staff
11%
CEO/president
10%
Other IT director/manager
7%
Director/manager, IT operations
6%
Director/manager, IT or infrastructure
6%
Consultant
6%
Line-of-business management
2%
CIO
2%
Vice president, IT or infrastructure
1%
CFO/financial management
1%
Director/manager, network systems
1%
Vice president, non-IT
1%
COO/operations management
1%
Security staff
1%
CTO
15%
Other
Green IT_Chart_23

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December 2008

The Eco-Enterprise And

InformationWeek Analytics Reports

December 2008 © 2008 InformationWeek, Reproduction Prohibited

7 Figure 1: ROI Vital When Evaluating Green IT

8 Figure 2: Power Use, Energy-Saving Features Top Requirements

11 Figure 4: Data Center Modifications Needed

11 Figure 5: Green IT Marketing Not Yet Common

13 Figure 7: Sustainability Processes Not Top Of Mind

14 Figure 8: Most Have Desktop Power-Saving Policy

15 Figure 9: Perception Of U.S. Green IT Progress Split

16 Figure 10: Consolidation, Virtualization Most Popular

17 Figure 11: Most Factor In Green Benefits

18 Figure 12: Chief Energy Officer Not Popular

18 Figure 13: CEO, Executive Management Primary Drivers Of Green Initiatives

19 Figure 14: Many Seek Environmentally Friendly Alternatives

21 Figure 15: Many Feel Their Companies Are On Par, Ahead

22 Figure 16: E-Waste Programs Not Pervasive

24 Figure 17: Power Saving For Servers Common

25 Figure 19: Few Measure Carbon Footprint

26 Figure 20: Green IT Messaging Generally Clear

27 Figure 21: Standardized Measurements Important To Green IT Adoption

28 Figure 22: Importance Of Green IT Predicted To Grow

29 Figure 23: Company Revenue

30 Figure 25: Industry

31 Figure 26: Job Title

December 2008 © 2008 InformationWeek, Reproduction Prohibited

Michael Healey is the chief technology officer at GreenPages

Mike has taught courses at MIT Lowell Institute and Northeastern

December 2008 © 2008 InformationWeek, Reproduction Prohibited

December 2008 © 2008 InformationWeek, Reproduction Prohibited

December 2008 © 2008 InformationWeek, Reproduction Prohibited

Taming IT Energy Hogs

BEYOND PULLING PLUGS

ROI Vital When Evaluating Green IT

December 2008 © 2008 InformationWeek, Reproduction Prohibited

Impact Assessment: Green IT

December 2008 © 2008 InformationWeek, Reproduction Prohibited

10% We’ve had a policy in place

Data: InformationWeek Analytics Green IT Survey of 419 business technology professionals

Need major modifications

Data: InformationWeek Analytics Green IT Survey of 419 business technology professionals

Base: 369 respondents with green policies or practices

December 2008 © 2008 InformationWeek, Reproduction Prohibited

Sustainability Processes Not Top Of Mind

We don’t check vendors’ 7%

We prefer it, but not if it costs more

Data: InformationWeek Analytics Green IT Survey of 419 business technology professionals

Yes, for most systems

Data: InformationWeek Analytics Green IT Survey of 419 business technology professionals

Data: InformationWeek Analytics Green IT Survey of 419 business technology professionals

Consolidation, Virtualization Most Popular

Minor factor, expected

Base: 297 respondents who have implemented virtualization

Data: InformationWeek Analytics Green IT Survey of 419 business technology professionals

It’s all PR; we want to be CEO or other non-IT executive

Base: 369 respondents with green policies or practices

Many Seek Environmentally Friendly Alternatives

I don’t worry about it

I understand issues and look 8%

Data: InformationWeek Analytics Green IT Survey of 419 business technology professionals

Green Evaluation Criteria

More details on Energy Star for Buildings is at: energystar.gov/index.cfm?