ESG – Environmental, Social, and Governance – is no longer just a corporate buzzword. It’s a framework that’s reshaping how businesses are evaluated by customers, suppliers, investors, and even employees.
But while companies scramble to tackle emissions, diversity targets, and governance reform, one surprisingly impactful area often gets missed:
Your print environment.
Yes – your printers, paper usage, and document workflows are directly connected to ESG performance. Here’s how a smarter print strategy can help you deliver on all three ESG pillars.
1. Environmental: Shrink Your Footprint, Fast
Modern print strategy is a quick win for sustainability.
- Reduce waste with rules-based printing policy, such as duplex printing or mono defaults
- Cut paper consumption by eliminating unnecessary print jobs and encouraging digital workflows
- Upgrade to energy-efficient devices with automatic sleep modes and lower power use
- Consolidate and right-size your printer fleet to remove underused or duplicated hardware
- Track usage to drive behavioural change and accountability
Many businesses see a substantial reduction in print-related waste and energy just by implementing a basic optimisation strategy.
2. Social: Empower Staff, Protect Data
Your people and processes matter — and print impacts both.
- Reduce employee frustration with reliable devices and less downtime
- Enable flexible working with secure mobile and remote print capabilities
- Ensure secure printing so sensitive documents don’t sit uncollected on trays
- Improve accessibility with cloud-based print for distributed teams
- Support wellbeing by removing manual, time-consuming admin work tied to print
Social responsibility isn’t just external — it starts with the systems your teams interact with daily.
3. Governance: Control, Visibility & Risk Management
Print is often an unseen governance risk. Poor visibility, unclear ownership, and outdated contracts can create financial and compliance headaches.
A strategic print approach delivers:
- Centralised reporting to understand who prints what, where, and why
- Cost centre tracking for internal accountability
- Better contract oversight, eliminating hidden fees and supplier lock-ins
- Improved data security, with encrypted transmission and access control
- Policy enforcement aligned with IT and compliance standards
You can’t govern what you can’t see — and most organisations have limited visibility into their print spend, usage, or risk profile.
Why Most Businesses Miss This
Print tends to fly under the radar — especially when it’s “just working.” But that’s exactly where opportunity lives.
Channel IP helps businesses across Australia unlock ESG gains through independent, vendor-neutral print reviews. No product sales. No bias. Just real insight into how to reduce waste, enhance control, and align print with your broader ESG roadmap.
Final Thought: You Can’t Improve What You Don’t Measure
If ESG is on your board’s radar, it’s time to look at print — not just as a cost centre, but as a strategic lever for change.
Curious how your print environment stacks up against your ESG goals?
Start with an initial discussion and no-cost review from Channel IP.
