Corporate Digital Responsibility (CDR): Elevating the Ethical Process of Your Business – July 2024

In a world where corporate social responsibility (CSR) is paramount, corporate digital responsibility (CDR) often remains neglected, even within organizations most committed to ethical practices. Yet, it is an essential pillar for a comprehensive ethical approach, both in terms of products and services and their digital infrastructure. This neglect arises from several factors: lack of awareness of the environmental impact of digital technology, misconceptions about its immateriality and technological complexity, focus on more traditional ethical aspects, and perceived high costs of implementation.

The heavy “backpack” of digital technology

Environmentally, digital technology consumes enormous amounts of electricity and water and generates significant greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. This leads to intensive extraction of mineral resources and an increase in electronic waste, threatening planetary boundaries and compromising the achievement of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the 16 indicators of the Product Environmental Footprint (PEF).

Socially, digital technology raises concerns about working conditions, the digital divide, addictions, and the attention economy. On a societal level, it influences information, raises data protection issues, and deteriorates our communication methods (information overload, superficiality of exchanges, cyberbullying, misinformation, reduction of social skills, social anxiety, etc.).

Benefits of ethical IT

Making your IT ethical has numerous benefits: strengthening the company’s credibility, reducing its environmental footprint, better risk management, meeting consumer expectations, anticipating regulations, stimulating sustainable innovation, and attracting talent.

However, responsible digital technology goes beyond technology and minimalism. It encompasses ethical dimensions such as respect for privacy, social aspects like digital inclusion, well-being considerations, societal responsibility in technology use, transparent governance, and responsible innovation.

Integrating CSR and CDR

Digital technology is omnipresent in nearly all aspects of business activity. Ignoring its impact would mean neglecting a significant part of the company’s overall footprint. To fully embrace the ethical process, it is crucial to integrate CSR and CDR into the company’s DNA.

This requires a systemic and comprehensive approach, a corporate culture focused on responsibility, ethical innovation, transparent communication, cross-sector collaboration, and continuous performance measurement and improvement. By adopting this holistic vision, the company becomes a true agent of change, creating a resilient, innovative organization aligned with the values of a changing world. This approach allows the company to genuinely fulfill its ethical mission, using responsible digital technology as a lever for positive transformation for both the company and society as a whole.

This is why we created NumEtik, a consulting and co-piloting firm dedicated to implementing CDR in small and medium-sized French enterprises (SMEs) and industries (SMIs). We support these companies and conduct responsible digital maturity audits of their organizations. Assessing their current situation and understanding the levers for improvement is crucial before launching ethical optimization projects for their IT.

Eric Reinbold

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