How a CMS can improve ESG

How a cloud-based CMS can improve ESG

In recent years, we’ve seen the case for environmental, social, and governance (ESG) considerations shoot up the corporate agenda and become a critical component of business operations.

Why the big fuss?

ESG is important not only for maintaining a good corporate reputation, but also for attracting and retaining customers, investors, and employees who are concerned about sustainability, ethics, and social responsibility.

One area where ESG considerations are particularly relevant is content management. A cloud-based content management system (CMS) can offer many benefits that align with ESG priorities.

Putting the environment front and centre 

Firstly, a cloud-based CMS can significantly reduce a company's environmental impact. By using the cloud, a company can eliminate the need for on-premises servers, which require significant amounts of energy to operate and cool – particularly important given the cost of energy right now. Cloud providers use more energy-efficient data centres that are optimised for high performance and low energy consumption. This can reduce a company's carbon footprint and contribute to its sustainability goals.

A benefit of the Forrit platform being built on Microsoft Azure is its commitment to sustainable innovations. Choosing a platform that uses Azure, is a recognition of the commitment that Microsoft has to use 100% renewable energy by 2025 and become a zero-waste and water-positive organisation by 2030.

Better collaboration, communication, and transparency

Secondly, an unexpected benefit of a cloud-based CMS – like Forrit – that has simplicity at its core, is the increase in collaboration that can emerge when creating content across a company. With a cloud-based CMS, employees can access all elements of the web estate anytime, anywhere which can increase productivity and efficiency.

Equally, this increased collaboration can positively impact transparency. When content is simpler to update, it is easier (and quicker) for a company to share critical information with its stakeholders. This can improve communication with these audiences (which can include investors, customers, and employees) as well as help to demonstrate the company’s commitment to transparency and accountability – important ESG considerations.

Another element that must be considered from a governance perspective is centred on accessibility. More than one billion people around the world experience accessibility issues every day, an important social consideration for organisations. Forrit offers proven accessibility foundations that help you deliver user-friendly pages.

Keeping cost in mind

For those with an eye on the bottom line, a cloud-based CMS can create cost savings – something to be welcomed by all as businesses recover from the pandemic and the pinch of increasing costs.

By using a CMS such as Forrit, an organisation can reduce its third-party software costs and achieve a faster payback on its investment. These savings can then be reinvested in ESG initiatives, such as social impact programmes.

Scale as you need to

For those organisations going through a period of growth, or for those looking to consolidate websites following M&A, selecting a CMS in the cloud can provide scalability for their content management needs. With a cloud-based CMS, a company can easily scale up or down resources as needed, to accommodate changes in demand.

When an organisation chooses to work with Forrit, they can maximise the performance and availability of their websites with Azure datacentres around the globe.

Security in mind

Another governance consideration in relation to the CMS is around security.

Last year, more than a third of UK businesses (39%) suffered a cyber-attack according to government data. The increasing cyber threat, alongside good governance and compliance outlined by industry bodies, means that online security awareness must be a top priority.

Choosing the right CMS is crucial to the security of a website. It can act as a guardrail, guiding users away from making errors and potentially causing a content security risk. A robust and compliant CMS platform is the first line of defence against constantly evolving cyber-crimes.

Selecting a cloud-based CMS can offer numerous benefits that align with ESG priorities which can be powerful. In addition to reducing a company's environmental impact, a cloud-based CMS can improve collaboration and communication, increase transparency, provide cost savings, offer scalability, and support security.

In today’s market, a company that can demonstrate its commitment to sustainability, ethics, and social responsibility, will in turn attract and retain customers, investors, and employees.