Fujitsu global survey demonstrates how 'digital first' approach helps to accelerate sustainability transformation

Jun 28, 2022 12:26 JST

Source: Fujitsu Ltd

41% of business leaders in 9 countries cite sustainability among their top three management priorities

TOKYO, Jun 28, 2022 - (JCN Newswire) - Fujitsu today released its "Fujitsu Future Insights Global Sustainability Transformation Survey Report 2022," highlighting the results of a survey of 1,800 business executives and decision makers in 9 countries conducted by Forrester Consulting with the aim of understanding global trends and current conditions in sustainability transformation(1)(SX).

Figure 1. Stage of progress in SX initiatives: breakdown by share of companies

Figure 2. Graph of four elements

Figure 3. Graph of DX contribution in SX

This sixth survey investigated the current status of SX and how digital transformation (DX) contributes to the changes required to improve society's sustainability.

Fujitsu will draw on the insights and knowledge gained from this survey to work with its customers to resolve issues towards the realization of a sustainable future for business and society.

Global Sustainability Transformation Survey Report 2022

Sustainability: a growing management challenge for business leaders globally

Sustainability that takes into account environmental, societal, and economic impacts represents an urgent priority for individuals, companies, and governments around the world. Companies, in particular, need to prioritize sustainability not only with regard to the differentiation of their business, but also for the survival of the company. To this end, Fujitsu commissioned Forrester Consulting to conduct a survey to clarify the actual state of range of companies' SX initiatives, and will now issue the results in the Fujitsu Future Insights Global Sustainability Transformation Survey Report.

Key findings:

1. Sustainability as a management priority

41% of respondents place sustainability among the top three management priorities, which demonstrates that the importance of sustainability has risen sharply in business strategy and decision-making over the past two years. The main reasons for this trend were rising awareness of sustainability among the younger generation (54%), government regulations and guidelines, and requests from consumer groups (49%).

2. Only 5% of companies are SX leaders

The survey revealed that 21% of the companies have already delivered results from SX initiatives. However, only 5% of the leaders have developed a vision for SX initiatives and a company-wide SX strategy and achieved significant results through comprehensive measures. In contrast, 54% of the respondents responded that they were unable to develop or implement a corporate sustainability strategy.

3. Digital-first approach as key to SX

The survey showed that SX leaders have a high degree of maturity in four elements: purpose-driven, human-centric, data-driven, and connected, suggesting that these four elements may be important success factors for achieving success in sustainability initiatives. In addition, 67% of the respondents agreed that DX would contribute to the success of SX, and the survey results also revealed a strong correlation between SX maturity and DX maturity. This demonstrates that a digital-first approach is a critical factor in promoting SX.

4. SX: Challenges and ways to solve them

In the survey, 38% of respondents cited a lack of executive alignment in sustainability vision and implementation, and 35% internal resistance and skepticism about sustainability initiatives as key issues in implementing sustainability initiatives. The survey further demonstrated that improving both the financial value including sales and profits and the non-financial value including creation of environmental and social value represent a major challenge. CEOs can address this issue by providing purpose-driven leadership, developing plans that include financial and non-financial goals, and leveraging digital technology with technology partners.

Fujitsu is promoting management and business operations based on its new global business brand, Fujitsu Uvance, which aims to contribute to the achievement of Fujitsu's purpose: "to make the world more sustainable by building trust in society through innovation."

The findings of this survey will help Fujitsu to continue to serve as customers' SX partner, simultaneously helping customers to succeed in business and to provide value to society.

Survey overview
1. Period: February 2022
2. Countries surveyed: Australia, China, France, Germany, Japan, Singapore, Spain, the United Kingdom, and the United States
3. Respondents: management and decision makers at companies with 500 or more employees and sales of 10 billion yen or more in the previous fiscal year.
4. Methodology: Anonymous online survey (number: 1,800) and interviews (number: 23)

Please download the full report "Fujitsu Future Insights Global Sustainability Transformation Survey Report 2022" at the following link: bit.ly/3P3EBmH

(1) Sustainability transformation :
Sustainability transformation means transforming business to bring about positive change in our environment, society and economies. Examples include the reduction of energy usage and CO2 emissions through continuous monitoring and the reduction of waste by implementing end-to-end traceability.

Fujitsu's Commitment to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) adopted by the United Nations in 2015 represent a set of common goals to be achieved worldwide by 2030. Fujitsu's purpose - "to make the world more sustainable by building trust in society through innovation" - is a promise to contribute to the vision of a better future empowered by the SDGs.

About Fujitsu

Fujitsu's purpose is to make the world more sustainable by building trust in society through innovation. As the digital transformation partner of choice for customers in over 100 countries, our 124,000 employees work to resolve some of the greatest challenges facing humanity. Our range of services and solutions draw on five key technologies: Computing, Networks, AI, Data & Security, and Converging Technologies, which we bring together to deliver sustainability transformation. Fujitsu Limited (TSE:6702) reported consolidated revenues of 3.6 trillion yen (US$32 billion) for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2022 and remains the top digital services company in Japan by market share. Find out more: www.fujitsu.com.

Sectors: Cloud & Enterprise