Workday says "No" to eWaste

As a responsible citizen of the cloud, Workday has recognized that besides being "100% Green Powered", it is also very important to handle all forms of eWaste in an environmentally acceptable way. Our goal is simple: "100% No Landfill". This means nothing that was used at Workday should end up in a landfill or be recycled in inappropriate ways.

In order to achieve this, we have drafted an Electronics Disposition Policy which governs all handling of obsolete electronics at Workday.  

The key objectives of the policy are:

• Data Safety First: Securely dispose of any data in any media in an irrecoverable way.

• Prevent Pollution: Where ever possible and environmentally sensible, equipment should be re-used internally to extend its life cycle providing value to Workday. Wherever internal re-use is not possible, opportunities for resale or donation should be pursued.

• Minimize Waste: Where re-use is not a viable option, every reasonable effort will be made to control all Electronic Wastes and to avoid Electronic Wastes from entering landfills, incinerators or entering other environmentally irresponsible processes. Environmental Partners shall contractually commit to employing environmentally responsible processes and practices in the recycling and disposal of materials. All exports and imports of Electronic Waste handled by Workday and its authorized environmental partners will comply with existing international waste trade agreements and legal requirements.

• Be a Responsible Neighbour: Workday does not permit Electronic Waste to be exported from developed (OECD/EU) to developing (non-OECD/EU) countries either directly or through intermediaries.

After a diligent selection process, Workday has chosen a vendor that complies with the required eStewards certifications. We are in the process of starting our collaboration and executing the disposition process as defined by our policy. As we move forward, we will expand coverage of this process to all obsolete electronics at Workday. 

Cloud Computing and Sustainability: Beyond energy and into ethics

BSR recently wrote an article on the sustainability impacts of cloud computing beyond the usual topic of energy/carbon reduction that instead delves into energy policy, human rights, and data privacy.

It is interesting to note that in the context of cloud computing, human rights doesn't necessarily equate to labor practices, but rather data privacy and protection of data by cloud service providers. This, of course, is an area that Workday takes very seriously.

They end with this note, which challenges cloud providers to broaden the scope of what is typically considered corporate responsibility:

"As cloud computing takes hold and changes the profile of business, so too will it change notions of business ethics and corporate responsibility. There was once a time when business would argue that suppliers should take sole responsibility for following labor and environmental laws, yet today we see armies of auditors and labor relations specialists going above and beyond what is legally required. A similar transition will arise with cloud computing, and activities deemed outside the scope of corporate responsibility today -- challenging unreasonable law enforcement demands and meddling in energy policy -- will be mainstream tomorrow. Now is the time for today’s most innovative companies to define what that looks like in practice."