Innovation

Updapt provides digital solutions to assist companies to meet their sustainability and ESG goals. The first step for a company to attain sustainability is to understand and analyze its current performance and ESG risk areas. Updapt’s digital platform provides a structured approach and helps companies identify key gaps in ESG goals by using frameworks like digital surveys and ESG analysis reports. The next step for the organization would be to set ESG and sustainability targets based on the current data collected. Updapt uses data analytics to help companies set up relevant short-term and long-term goals and to suggest strategies on how to reach them. The platform constantly monitors the company’s progress and suggests corrective measures if the company is going off-track from its goals. Some of the analysis done by Updapt are Scenario analysis, Climate risk resilience analysis, Materiality analysis. The analytics software has been designed by analyzing more than 10,000 publicly listed companies on ESG metrics.

For a large organization that is widespread across geographies implementing and monitoring ESG and sustainability goals becomes a challenging task. This issue has been addressed by Updapt’s platform. The digital platform acts as a central strategy management system providing flexibility to customize and implement at an organization level across geographies. The platform provides a dashboard with a smooth and easy-to-understand user interface. The dashboard includes performance graphs, a timeline to gauge the progress of targets and actions that are set to be achieved.

Nowadays it has become important to report your ESG metrics. There are several global standards and regulatory requirements for ESG metrics. Complying a company’s ESG reports to these standards can become a challenging task. Updapt’s platform has pre-designed templates which helps organization gather and report data into internationally recognized standards like GRI, CDP, SASB, IR, TCFD. This makes reporting of ESG metrics efficient and saves ample time for the companies.

Inspiration

Mr. Mithun Suvarna and Mr. Satish Ramchandani, the co-founders of Updapt had worked in the sustainability and ESG strategy space for over a decade. The co-founders said that "in the recent years there has been an increased awareness about environmental sustainability in the corporate world thanks to the efforts taken by the international organizations like UN and the global political leaders." But they felt that most companies do not know how to build their roadmap to sustainability and struggle to implement sustainable business practices. Most of the existing technological solutions were limited to just collecting and storing ESG data. There aren’t many products that use the power of data analytics to help companies identify gaps, and set up strategies to meet their ESG and sustainability goals. This has inspired them to build Updapt to solve these problems.

Overall impact

Updapt’s solutions help companies reach ESG goals, UN SDGs, and other requirements specified by regulatory bodies for making their business less harmful to the environment. Updapt wants to be a catalyst for decarbonization. They are working to reach net-zero by 2050, balanced with other sustainability goals and tailored to regional contexts. Updapt promotes the use of renewable energy resources among its clients by suggesting strategies to reduce the dependence on fossil fuels. They are also conducting research to help companies implement sustainable sourcing and circular supply chains. Apart from this, it publishes weekly articles spreading awareness about the climate and updates about various reforms taken at a global level to curb the environmental destruction caused. The new generation needs to know the harm that is being caused by reckless and careless consumption of resources. Future leaders should be warned about the environmental hazards that are caused by organizations currently and the need for sustainable business practices. These articles help spread such kind of awareness.

Business benefit

The innovation described above being the main product of the company is the source of their revenue. Within 3 years of its incorporation, the company has got many clients ranging from investors, credit rating agencies, large manufacturing firms, and pharmaceutical companies. The company was founded by a handful of people in 2019 and has grown significantly to employ 35 people across 3 cities. Since employees are working on a challenging product and having a contribution towards saving the environment their employee retention rate is close to 100%.

Being a very innovative product in this tech-focused world it has high growth potential considering its role in sustainability goals to be achieved by companies. This is a serious concern and every company is looking forward to achieving the lowest environmental harm. So, considering this, this innovative idea would help gain a lot of clients and expand the business towards greater heights. Even during the pandemic, the company managed to sustain and flourish and gained huge profits. This innovation not only benefits this organization but also helps the earth breathe better and encourages other production companies to achieve their target of minimizing environmental hazards as early and as effectively as possible.

Social and environmental benefit

Analyzing the carbon emission, the consumption of fossil fuels, and various other factors that come under the ‘Global Sustainability Goals’, this innovation will not only help achieve those goals but will also ensure prevention of further destruction to the environment and sustainable use of resources. It targets various UN Sustainable Development Goals like Responsible Consumption, Climate Action, Sustainable Cities and Communities and Affordable and Clean Energy. Apart from analyzing the amount of consumption they even suggest a plan as to how to reduce the amount of consumption. This helps companies easily implement new strategies in order to reduce consumption. With rising concern about the declining condition of the environment due to excessive use of resources and harmful emissions this kind of innovation will go a long way in saving our Earth from further depletion and help recover the damage already caused. This will in turn benefit the society which will get a clean and safe environment to live in and will ensure optimal use of resources which will guarantee the preservation of natural resources. Responsible consumption of resources is the need of the hour and this innovation tackles that very aspect. It not only calculates the amount of consumption but also gives an ideal way to reduce the consumption to a target level so as to ensure optimal use of resources with minimal harm to the environment. Such innovations are the need of the hour. Implementing sustainable business practices has a positive impact on the balance sheet of the companies in the long run. Also, it gives them goodwill among the general public. With regulators taking strict measures to save the environment and levying high taxes or penalties on companies that do not meet the requirements, Updapt's solution helps on this front. Investors, banks, and Venture capitalist firms have started to take into account a company's environmental impact before proving them with loans or investments. Using Updapt's solutions helps companies have better access to such funds.

Interviews

Satish Ramchandani, Co-founder & Chief Business Officer

K Supreeth Rao, Co-Founder & Finance Head