At IFS Connect UKI 2025 in Birmingham, UK, the increasing prominence of sustainability as a critical corporate mandate was on full display. Presentations from Caitlin Keam, VP Sustainability Applications and Sophie Graham, Chief Sustainability Officer made it clear: for industrial enterprises navigating rising regulation, climate risk, and stakeholder scrutiny, sustainability is now a business-critical function. And IFS is reshaping its cloud platform to deliver measurable ESG impact—not just reporting compliance.
“Sustainability is at a tipping point,” said Graham. “It’s becoming part of financial materiality, talent strategy, and long-term risk management.” That shift—from external obligation to internal transformation—is what IFS Cloud aims to operationalize with its new Sustainability Management and Emissions Management modules.
Keam and Graham addressed the regulatory complexity head-on. With global mandates like the EU’s CSRD, ISSB standards, and UK-specific regulations evolving rapidly, companies face a deluge of new reporting expectations. “You need to manage over 4,000 ESG KPIs—but only the ones material to you,” Keam explained. IFS’s solution: built-in double materiality assessments, automated KPI generation, and a data lake connected directly to operational systems.
But beyond compliance, the real value comes from data-to-decision acceleration. With verified emissions calculations through a partnership with Climatiq and supplier ESG ratings via IntegrityNext, IFS helps companies build full-spectrum ESG insight—across assets, supply chains, and capital investments.
IFS is also showcasing how industrial AI can generate both productivity gains and sustainability returns. One standout: its Planning and Scheduling Optimization (PSO) engine, which reduces engineer travel by 37%, leading to a 30% cut in emissions and €13 million in savings in some cases.
In the longer term, tools like Copperleaf for Asset Investment Planning (used by Anglian Water) are helping companies adapt to climate change by building resilient, forward-looking investment models that balance operational reliability and carbon reduction. “Sustainability isn’t just about tracking—it’s about forecasting, optimizing, and transforming,” said Keam.
What this means for ERP insiders
Sustainability is no longer overhead. Companies across manufacturing, energy, utilities, aerospace, construction, telecom, and service sectors should assess whether sustainability data is fragmented across bolt-ons—or flowing from operational systems. Start by linking ESG goals to real-time KPIs using IFS Sustainability Management. Activate the Emissions Management module to capture Scope 1 and 2 data from asset hierarchies and utility invoices, then extend to Scope 3 via supply chain modules. Use this data to drive decisions—not just compliance. Treat sustainability not as overhead, but as a route to resilience, funding access, and competitive edge.
ESG as forethought vs. afterthought. IFS’s sustainability solutions are fully embedded in its single data model and composable architecture, offering end-to-end traceability from asset to emissions outcome. The platform includes automated reporting aligned with CSRD and ISSB standards, AI-based supplier sustainability ratings, and real-time emissions capture from procurement to asset performance. Use cases like Volvo Trucks (remanufacturing with 80% lower emissions) and Yorkton (carbon savings from service-based models) prove the platform can support both short-term optimizations and long-term business model shifts. Unlike bolt-on solutions, IFS delivers connected, actionable ESG data from within.
You’re either at the table or on the menu. IFS’s native sustainability integration differentiates it from ERP rivals still relying on third-party partnerships or compliance-only bolt-ons. By embedding ESG into capital planning, field service, and supply chain execution, IFS aligns environmental goals with operational strategy—essential for industrial sectors. The global ESG tech market is projected to exceed $60B by 2030. With emissions intelligence, embedded AI, and data-to-decision capabilities now in product, IFS is positioned to lead in sustainability-focused enterprise software—especially if it can continue to scale cloud adoption, AI extensibility, and cross-vertical integration.
