Green IT Strategies and Applications - Essay Example

? Green IT Strategies and Applications [Type the [Pick the ment The has taken a very balanced approach to the implementation of green IT technologies in today’s corporate world. The green technologies and improvements needed in the IT sector like cloud computing, power management, paperless environment and data center optimization are very much related to positivity in cost efficiency but they are still not being implemented by the top corporations in the world. The reason being that today’s market driven philosophy believes in profits without taking into account certain parameters that will benefit the society and the company likewise. This scenario results in lobbying by several pressure groups while the environment and improved efficiency don’t see daylight. There is a need to develop consensus and awareness among the corporations and hierarchy alike as to how implementing green based IT approach will benefit them both (Unhelkar, 2011). Is it an indirect condemnation of capitalism and promotion of capitalism? Without insight, this statement of the author can be easily taken out of context and preached as pro communist but in reality this is not the case here. The author simply means that in blind pursuit of profits for the company several important things like green IT measures are forgotten along the way which can benefit both the society and the corporation but is not seen by these public private entities because of blind following of profiteering and lack of vision. The political set up has nothing to do with it except implementing it and making legislations regarding it that will enable the green IT revolution to flourish. Other than that is strictly irrelevant to the cause. West and East Germany, People’s Republic of China and Soviet Union as communist states were supposed to give equality and life of equal living to its citizens but in the environmental they had failed miserably (In case of China, it is still failing to address this issue). This went wrong not because they were communists. It went wrong because they failed to identify and correct the long term problems that come associated with industrialization like lower emissions and less nitrogenous content in the atmosphere. Why isn’t anyone implementing these Green IT procedures when they are proved to be more profitable? In the race for getting more profits, markets and control, the companies fail to address the longevity of the issues facing the world like pollution, perceived shortage of power and the recent issue of IT junk. The lack of implementation in this regard will also hurt the very environment which the corporations rely on to buy their products and services. The green IT ways are more efficient both monetarily and function wise and it’s a dire need to create awareness about them at all levels of corporate and governmental enterprises. The implementation of these practices will not only result in increased profits and versatility (e.g. cloud hosting) to these organizations but it will also set a healthy trend in the market encouraging more and more to go green. As the new lean concept that was previously strictly the domain of Japanese Auto manufacturers making its way to companies around the world, the reduction of waste and careful monetary inspection of each process getting more and more importance, these efficient green IT products and upgrades are soon hopeful of making entry to the corporate fold (Jones, 2012). Is change in attitude towards green IT really positive or could it be coercion to transfer to new ways? The author clearly states that there are financial benefits to be reaped if an organization shifts to green IT applications, hardware and waste management so if there are monetary and environmental benefits available at the same time one should really go for it and there should be no coercion involved. The author has over emphasized some points like the environmental benefits and the corporations lacking vision but if you see it the other way, we can feel that if lower costs are involved, the organizations should readily shift to these new technologies due to their “blind” following of profit wherever they can find it but curiously it is not the case. The organizations have not implemented it yet. Maybe a potential switch over problem not discussed by the author or a serious issue of technicality associated with these green ways. But the chances of these to happen to all of the green applications are rare indeed as most are up and running software. So in my point of view, the author is not using coercion but he has over killed some points in favor of his argument (TheEconomist, 2013). Kahn has pointed out that the market mechanism fails to allocate resources efficiently when private costs are not equal to social costs or when private benefits are not equal to social benefits. This situation can be balanced by environmental legislations (sic) at the government level and environment polices at the organizational level. Who decides? Does this sound like capitalism or even representative democracy? The government is responsible for the social and economic uplift of the country. Elected governments of representative capitalist countries in particular are elected by the masses to maintain a balance between economic and social levels in the country with neither being compromised too much at the other’s expense. So the implementation of green IT applications even if there is some cost involved by the relevant organization’s own end (as long as it doesn’t lower its profits considerably), is a perfect example of where government mediation is required to lessen the environmental problems. It is at the heart of a representative democracy that they do something good for the betterment of whole society as a whole at some expense of a few rich and it doesn’t undermine capitalist nature because the system is surviving and sustaining (Pond, 1984). People who "get it" (Green IT) are described as erudite. What does that say about the opinion of all those who aren't convinced? Dismissive? This seems a bold statement for something that is not well defined and in its infancy. Do you agree? Any organization that is realizing the long term social problems and doing everything it can intellectually like the nascent green IT strategy to solve them should be called erudite. However, this shouldn’t be taken as a negative for the companies that haven’t adopted this as yet and we shouldn’t brand them as backward, stubborn or profiteers in general. This is because many of them could actually be willing to adopt this environment friendly change provided this newborn concept is demonstrated and awareness and professional guidance given to them. References Jones, T. (2012). What Are the Top 10 Green IT Strategies? .Virtualization Journal. [online] Retrieved from: http://virtualization.sys-con.com/node/1764122 [Accessed: 23 Sep 2013]. Pond, E. (1984). East Germany disputes its status as the most polluted country in Europe. [online] Retrieved from: http://www.csmonitor.com/1984/1005/100538.html [Accessed: 23 Sep 2013]. TheEconomist (2013). The East is grey. [online] Retrieved from: http://www.economist.com/news/briefing/21583245-china-worlds-worst-polluter-largest-investor-green-energy-its-rise-will-have [Accessed: 23 Sep 2013]. Unhelkar, B. (2011). Green IT strategies and applications: Using environmental intelligence. Boca Raton: CRC Press. Read More