Companies say they're environmentally conscious, but talk is cheap. So SAS Institute is offering software designed to let companies assess their environmental impact and help them develop strategies to become greener.

SAS for Sustainability Management applies business intelligence capabilities to environmental performance. It includes a performance management app with metrics established by the Global Reporting Initiative, a 10-year-old group that has a framework used by 1,500 businesses to measure the economic, environmental, and social impact of their operations. It also includes SAS's activity-based management app, which tracks factors such as how much carbon emissions facilities produce and develops models that show how changes would affect costs and profit. In addition, SAS predictive analytics and risk management apps forecast trends related to sustainability, such as the possibility that government fines for environmental violations could go up in the future, raising costs.

SAS declined to say what the software will cost, but environmental BI could be a tough sell right now since it's not analyzing fast-payback factors such as the profitability of customers or new revenue opportunities, both high priorities in a slowing economy. Jonathan Hornby, a SAS marketing director, admits the software will appeal most to "proactive" companies anticipating stricter environmental regulations or looking to avoid negative publicity from an environmental mishap.

But don't underestimate the momentum behind the green movement, or the importance of having an organized, intelligent way to assess these efforts. Businesses face pressure from many directions, from customers to employees. "If you're 'green washing,' which means just saying it but not doing it, ... today's generation won't accept it," Hornby says. SAS says its software will provide transparency to separate the truly green from the talkers.

Cisco Systems is using the SAS tools to assess emissions at each of its facilities, prioritizing which need the most focus, and running predictive analytics on how various energy-efficiency projects might reduce emissions. "Our analysis prior to the SAS software was very basic--primarily the power of Excel," says Rob Rolfsen, Cisco's director of sustainable development.

GREEN PRESSURE FROM WALL STREET
SAS's predictive analytics approach is unique, yet it's not the first to venture into green management. SAP's governance, risk, and compliance business offers apps that help with emissions management and recycling of electrical and electronics waste, among others. Microsoft is working on online software and tools that help cities measure carbon emissions. There's also a handful of software companies focused on sustainability in Europe.

It's early in this effort, and hard business issues will drive adoption more than the altruistic desire to be a good corporate citizen, says John Davies, an AMR Research analyst. He points to the Carbon Disclosure Project, created by Goldman Sachs, Citibank, and other investors, which requires large companies they invest in to report carbon emissions. "It's traditional risk management, but in areas that are being spotlighted in a way they had not before," he says.

In applying BI to environmental performance, SAS may be on to something as the pressure mounts on companies to go green and prove it.