By Bas Beemsterboer, EAM Evangelist, IFS

How does the lack of a sustainability strategy impact your business? And how can EAM technology help you? Let’s explore the possible outcomes of not having a sustainability strategy.

1. Customers leave

People are fed up with companies that disregard how their business practices impact the planet, with the majority willing to pay more to support environmentally friendly alternatives.

The Global Sustainability Study by Simon-Kucher & Partners surveyed 10,000 people across 17 countries to understand why sustainability is increasingly important in purchasing decisions. It turns out that globally, 85% of respondents report shifting their purchase behavior to support sustainable options—even if it costs more.

Not surprisingly, customers expect enterprises to put their money where their mouths are, backing up claims of environmental consciousness with science and hard facts.

For asset-dependent organizations, this means tracking hundreds and even thousands of enterprise assets to report on various environmental outputs, including carbon emissions, air and water pollution, deforestation, waste management, water usage, and many other measurements.

EAM technology helps the planet and the bottom line, connecting diverse components and providing broad oversight of the entire operation. Along with ensuring asset productivity and other traditional business outputs, enterprises can set specific sustainability goals, track performance, and receive real-time alerts when anomalies occur.

Most importantly, EAM technology enables detailed reporting to prove compliance with regulatory and industry standards—incontrovertible proof of the company’s commitment to sustainability.

2. Hiring (and retaining) people is difficult

People want to take pride in their work and their employer, favoring job offers from companies with an established track record in sustainability practices. 51% of people* report that they won’t work for a company that doesn’t have strong social or environmental commitments.

These numbers only increase within younger demographics, with 96% of millennial employees* requiring that their employers take active steps to become more sustainable over time. With millennial employees projected to make up to 75% of the workforce by 2025, it’s clear that enterprises that want to be an employer of choice will need a strong sustainability ethos.

EAM technology delivers hard numbers a company can use to prove its position and performance relative to sustainability. Along with real-time data, EAM tracks performance over time, comparing present-day results with established benchmarks.

3. Investors won’t invest

Socially conscious investors rely on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) standards to gauge a company’s behavior when screening potential investments. If an organization falls short of its ESG commitments, the investment is redirected to businesses with a positive track record and consistent results.

According to PWC research, ESG has become a make-or-break consideration for leading investors globally:

• 49% of investors express willingness to divest from companies that aren’t taking sufficient action on ESG issues
• 59% of investors say lack of action on ESG issues makes it likely they’d vote against an executive pay agreement (a third of investors have already taken this action)
• 79% state that how a company manages ESG risks and opportunities is an important factor in their investment decision-making

From the perspective of sustainability, ESG standards consider how a company safeguards the environment, including corporate policies to address climate change and other factors.

ESG requirements easily integrate into an enterprise’s digital strategy through intelligent EAM data and reporting. Asset-intensive organizations can share detailed reports and data to help investors evaluate potential environmental impacts, including how the company manages these risks.

• Corporate reputations are irreparably damaged

When companies ignore or purposely damage the environment, public and regulatory responses are immediate and intense. Especially if the business fails to meet goals to which it has already committed.

Perceived as greenwashing, customers judge falling short on sustainability commitments harshly, negatively impacting how they experience the company’s products and services.

In July 2022, the Harvard Business Review studied 202 publicly traded large US firms, examining goals and actions related to green product innovation (GPI). The study also incorporated customer satisfaction, social responsibility, and accounting and financial data from vetted sources.

The results? Companies perceived to be greenwashing experience a 1.34% drop in their ACSI customer satisfaction score. While this may seem like a small effect, given the narrow range within which most companies compete, even a small change has significant implications for corporate performance.

With EAM technology, enterprises can easily manage asset performance, delivering on stated commitments and adjusting course proactively to stay on track.

If an environmental incident is due to asset failure, EAM technology provides the business with historical and real-time data to help determine how the failure occurred. In scenarios where negligence is not a factor, reputational damage is often mitigated.

Achieve Your Sustainability Goals with EAM Technology

IFS works with enterprises globally, providing flexible, end-to-end asset management capabilities within IFS Cloud to help them set and achieve their ESG goals.

Dr. Fadi Alhaddadin, Assistant Professor, Mathematical and Computer Sciences, Heriot-Watt University Dubai.

As urbanisation accelerates in the Middle East, cities are evolving into hubs of innovation to address population growth, manage limited resources, and enhance quality of life. Smart cities are central to the region’s digital transformation, with the integration of spatial data and edge computing revolutionising urban planning. These technologies allow for distributed data processing at the network’s edge, reshaping the management of infrastructure, resources, and citizens. In this article, Dr. Fadi Alhaddadin explores the impact of edge computing and spatial data on the transformation of Middle Eastern cities, offering recent statistics and regional examples.

The Rise of Smart Cities in the Middle East

The smart city concept appeals to many countries in the Middle East as they work towards a better future reliant on technological innovations. Nations such as the UAE and Saudi Arabia have taken a leading role in these strategies by applying modern technologies in their cities’ administration, providing services, and maintaining living conditions.

This transformation has been accelerated by a key factor: edge computing. Edge computing refers to a computing architecture that processes data at its source, rather than relying exclusively on centralised cloud systems. By minimising latency and improving the quality of real-time outcomes, edge computing meets the demands of smart cities. It enables the integration of spatial data—information about the location of objects or events—into urban planning, infrastructure development, and the provision of public services.

Augmenting Infrastructure through Edge Computing

Infrastructure forms the foundation of any smart initiative, and the Middle East is increasingly leveraging edge computing to optimise the management of its critical systems. For roads, bridges, water, and energy grids, edge computing enables real-time monitoring and predictive maintenance, reducing operational costs and enhancing efficiency.

In Dubai, as part of the Smart Dubai program, edge computing has been integrated into the city’s urban infrastructure to manage traffic and promote public transport use. Sensors and IoT devices across the city enable real-time data collection, allowing traffic control systems to adjust signals, re-route vehicles, and swiftly reduce delays.

Moreover, NEOM, a smart city under construction in Saudi Arabia, is utilising edge computing to manage its transportation networks, nuclear facilities, and renewable energy grids. With a focus on real-time data analysis, NEOM aims to reduce energy consumption and create a fully sustainable urban ecosystem. Projections suggest that by 2030, this smart city could contribute up to $48 billion to Saudi Arabia’s GDP, showcasing the economic potential of embracing advanced technologies.

Optimising Resource Management

The third crucial aspect of urbanisation is efficient resource management, which, in the Middle East, largely involves handling limited natural resources like water and energy. The integration of edge computing and spatial data presents significant opportunities to optimise the use of these essential resources.

Adopting these technologies also supports the growth of the region’s renewable energy sector. Masdar City in the UAE, recognised as one of the world’s most sustainable urban areas, utilises edge computing to monitor and manage its solar power systems. By applying geospatial data on solar irradiance and weather conditions, Masdar City ensures its solar panels operate at peak efficiency. This reliance on renewable energy has enabled the city to reduce its dependence on conventional energy sources, with most of its power coming from sustainable resources.

Enhancing Citizen Engagement

One notable impact of smart city technologies is the improvement of citizen engagement. By leveraging edge computing to integrate spatial data, cities can better tailor their services to meet residents’ needs, enhancing overall efficiency. This fosters active participation and greater satisfaction among citizens, who can play a role in managing the urban environment.

Challenges and Opportunities

While the integration of edge computing and spatial data holds significant potential, it also presents certain challenges. The primary concern is data security and privacy, as the increased generation of data at the network’s edge raises the risk of cyber threats. To ensure the success of smart cities, robust cybersecurity measures must be put in place to safeguard the core systems.

Additionally, these technologies often require substantial investment in infrastructure, such as 5G networks and IoT devices. Achieving scalability and sustainability in smart city initiatives would demand collaboration between government and private sector stakeholders.

Despite these challenges, the opportunities far outweigh the risks. With the growing adoption of edge computing and spatial data, Middle Eastern cities are well-positioned to develop sustainable, resilient urban centers that prioritise citizens while driving economic growth.

Conclusion

The integration of edge computing and spatial data is fundamental to the Middle East’s vision for smart cities. These technologies are reshaping urban environments by improving infrastructure, optimising resource management, and boosting citizen engagement. Cities such as Abu Dhabi, Dubai, and Riyadh are leading the way, demonstrating how technology can create smarter, greener cities for the future. Although this transformation is still in its early stages, the region has the potential to become a trailblazer in the smart city revolution.

By John Mullins, Associate Professor of Management Practice in Marketing and Entrepreneurship, London Business School.

Over the past few years, the startup ecosystem in the UAE and the wider region has demonstrated remarkable resilience. In the UAE, for instance, the ecosystem ranks 1st regionally and 27th globally in the 2023 Global Startup Ecosystem Index, underscoring its evolution into a key entrepreneurship hub. Saudi Arabia’s capital, Riyadh, now ranks among the top five ecosystems in the region, while Abu Dhabi has emerged as the fastest-growing emerging ecosystem, with a remarkable 28 percent surge in value in 2024.

A lot of this growth is fostered by AI, according to a recent report, the MENA region is projected to gain $320 billion in economic growth by 2030. As AI reshapes industries and business models globally, the question arises: will the MENA region’s startup ecosystem be able to maintain its upward trajectory, or will the adoption of AI pose new challenges?

Is AI a New Threat?

Does AI represent a new and existential threat to the skill, imagination, and flair of the entrepreneur? Does it represent the ultimate knock-out punch that will push human entrepreneurial flair and skill to the canvas floor?

The potential for businesses using AI to increase their profits is one factor that has certainly influenced the stock market these past few years. Products such as chatbots, advanced search systems, and image-generation don’t seem to have strong monetization strategies and as global stock market valuations for AI companies fell over the summer this year, there was a growing sense that the AI bubble had burst.

In the UAE, however, AI adoption is on the rise, with the government aiming to make the UAE a global leader in AI by 2031. According to a PwC report, AI is expected to contribute $96 billion to the UAE’s GDP by 2030. This proactive approach, supported by initiatives such as the National Program for Artificial Intelligence, places the country in a unique position to harness AI for entrepreneurial growth.

Booms and bubbles aside, can AI potentially transform how entrepreneurs develop and implement strategies to enable them to grow and survive, even flourish? Studies suggest that AI can facilitate innovation by automating routine tasks, enabling entrepreneurs – like anyone else – to focus on creative problem-solving and strategic thinking. Concerns have unsurprisingly been raised, however, about the possible displacement of human intuition and creativity in entrepreneurial decision-making due to a potential over-reliance on AI.

For entrepreneurs, generative AI can assist with researching ideas, coming up with marketing collateral, creating a website, and more, but the main advantage of AI should be its ability to enhance human skills. It is impossible to imagine yielding to AI the human creativity, empathy and daring so necessary for the role of the entrepreneur. No backward-looking algorithm would be able to match these forward-looking skills. But it is quite feasible to imagine AI as an enabler for entrepreneurs.

A Boost, Not a Threat

I don’t share the dystopian view of the future. We humans are too ingenious to lose our souls to science. And I don’t believe we’ll get to a point where AI-based tech will be running all our affairs for us.

What is more than likely is that AI will actually spawn many more entrepreneurs, with perhaps the majority running their own small enterprises, at least at the outset. In the UAE, startups in AI-driven sectors are expected to be major contributors to future job creation. The Dubai Future Foundation predicts AI and robotics will generate 10% of the city’s job opportunities by 2030. Perhaps those that grow fast and become bigger companies thanks to AI will, as fast-growing entrepreneurial companies have for decades, create nearly all the new jobs on the planet. And, by virtue of Moore’s law and further advances in digital technology, they’ll be running businesses with a global reach – virtual experts, able to do business anywhere.

Looking at the world in 2024 and beyond, I can see a bright future on the horizon. The UAE’s Vision 2071 encapsulates this optimism, placing entrepreneurship and AI at the center of the country’s long-term economic strategy. Our shift towards entrepreneurship and our sheer adaptability are positively inspirational.

Making the Most of AI

Marketing and Sales: In the UAE, AI is transforming marketing efforts by enhancing personalization. Entrepreneurs are using AI-driven marketing tools to segment the market and deliver personalized content.

Accelerating Product Development: AI helps startups assess product viability by analyzing consumer feedback and identifying market trends faster than traditional methods. UAE entrepreneurs, benefiting from the government’s heavy investment in AI research and development, are leveraging these tools to stay competitive and accelerate product innovation.

Cost Saving and Operational Efficiency: AI-driven solutions in the UAE are helping businesses modernize their operations, from automated workflows to predictive maintenance. With the UAE aiming to reduce business costs and attract international investments, local startups are increasingly turning to AI to streamline processes, optimize supply chains, and reduce operational expenses. A good example of this is the London Business School MENA Startup Competition 2023’s winning startup, The Surpluss that uses machine learning to helping companies match together to share their excess resources to enhance sustainability.

Predictive Analytics: In the MENA region, where economic and consumer behavior can shift rapidly, predictive analytics provides a powerful tool for navigating uncertainty and capitalizing on emerging opportunities. AI-powered predictive analytics are already being used by UAE-based entrepreneurs to understand emerging market trends. For example, sectors like retail, e-commerce, and fintech are using AI to anticipate customer behavior, allowing businesses to make better-informed decisions on product offerings, inventory management, and even marketing campaigns.

In Summary

AI is about being practical and shrewd. Instead of being daunted by the complexity of AI, entrepreneurs should focus on the low-hanging fruit it offers. Locate ways in which to unlock faster time to market solutions; and boost product value and differentiate your business more sharply by using AI-powered analysis of user feedback.