Okta, the leading independent identity provider, announced the company has reached 100% renewable electricity for its global offices and employees’ work-from-home consumption in FY22. Okta also launched the Dynamic Work Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Emissions Study, designed to measure the environmental impact of today’s hybrid workforce. The study concluded that in a Dynamic Work environment, Okta’s hybrid work framework, employee emissions are about 21% lower than before implementing Dynamic Work.
Quantifying the company’s new environmental footprint has become crucial to Okta’s Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) process, as it expands and embraces Dynamic Work. Okta partnered with Global Sustainability Consultancy Anthesis to run an analysis comparing its FY20 pre-pandemic, pre-dynamic year of work and found that Dynamic Work can reduce GHG emissions, due to reduced employee commuting and reduced workplace square footage per person, even when accounting for incremental increases in home energy use.
“As a business, the way we evaluate our environmental footprint has evolved along with the way we work. Just as we need to be responsible for the environmental impact of the buildings we occupy and the services we provide, now we need to account for and help our employees to understand, measure and reduce their environmental impact in this new distributed, Dynamic Work model,” said Erin Baudo Felter, Vice President, Social Impact & Sustainability, Okta.
“Businesses around the globe are setting targets to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions as part of their climate change strategies. Anthesis is a critical partner to our clients in their efforts to not only create sustainable business models but to also measure impact”, said Emma Armstrong, Executive Director with Anthesis. “As the workplace evolves to accommodate changing needs accelerated by the pandemic, we were excited to partner with Okta to understand how a model that supports this new way of work impacts the environment. The projected reduction in emissions per person resulting from Okta’s Dynamic Work model is significant, and provides an example for how other companies might examine their workplace emissions in the future”.
The company was able to reach 100% renewable electricity by purchasing renewable energy certificates equal to 100% of its global office and work-from-home employees’ electricity consumption, and a commitment to energy efficiency with both LEED Silver and WELL Silver certified Okta offices. Most of the RECs were purchased from the California Bright Schools solar program, which helps to reach the most cost-effective energy-saving opportunities, supports renewable energy education and the installation of solar on schools across the state.
Additionally, Okta has also committed to provide employees with a guide for bringing sustainability into their work environments and wherever they are based; and integrating climate into enterprise-wide risk management processes.
