As we head into another fast-moving year, here are the five key trends we’re seeing in the market. Plus a bonus round at the end!
1. The Basics:
Accuracy & Efficiency
At the core, sustainability is a data challenge. Companies struggle with rounding up the right data and ensuring that it is accurate. With advances in OCR, there is no patience for small errors such as “O” instead of “0”. Look for more testing, more validation and more reports. The result is more reliable data, and less time spent checking it.
2. Business Value:
Fresh and Abundant
Bain reports that 90% of CEOs in high growth companies see business value in sustainability data, and that’s a trend we’re seeing everywhere. Good business decisions are based on fresh and abundant data – monthly updates that can be paired with monthly financials, and lots of granular detail on costs and usage to find the savings opportunities.
3. Confidence:
Audit-Ready Workflows
Sustainability data must be shared. This is especially true up and down supply chains. Audited data increases confidence and part of the audit review is how the data was handled, including data governance and approval workflows. Get ready to answer to your auditors and customers.
4. AI:
Only As Good As the Data
2026 is likely to be the breakout year for AI, in which it moves from novel to everyday. But without accurate, unified and contextual data, AI underperforms. Build valuable contextual data by adding business data to sustainability data, or adding in location details. Jump from spreadsheets to high-performance AI this year by setting up the right data sets.
5. Unleashing Hours:
Changing the Role of Sustainability
We’ve saved the most fun for last. Avoid the hours of drudgery, and the constant chasing of small details. Use automated sustainability data services to change your job. Leaders in sustainability will set up efficient data workflows, saving countless hours every month. With that extra time, they’ll make sustainability central to everyday business decisions across the enterprise. Now that’s a great job!
The Bottom Line: 2026 is the Year of Data
No one can expand their business role, stay abreast of AI and change their day-to-day tasks with stale, coarse, estimated sustainability data kept on spreadsheets. Unleash your career and bring your company to the industry forefront with awesome sustainability data.
Happy 2026! Wishing you the best for a great year!
