Xero has partnered with sustainability fintech Cogo to provide a way for small businesses to understand and reduce their carbon footprint.
Xero’s chief customer officer Rachel Powell said ESG was a key focus and that the venture would empower businesses to take greater responsibility for it.
“Sustainability is not just a trend, the fight against climate change is a global challenge,” she said.
“Small businesses are increasingly looking to operate more sustainably and understand their carbon impact, in much the same way they understand their financial data, but many don’t know where to start.
“By collaborating with Cogo we’re helping to provide the technology and resources to help small businesses to make more sustainable decisions for their business and ultimately reduce their impact on the environment.”
Cogo’s Business Carbon Manager app works by pulling in transactional data from Xero, such as spending on electricity and fuel, and assigns a carbon footprint to each transaction and then calculates the footprint for the business.
Xero said users of the app could also access tailored advice and education on actions they could take to that carbon footprint.
Cogo’s APAC chief executive Julie Lindenberg said small businesses were catching on to the importance of ESG goals.
“As governments and big businesses set environmental targets, small businesses that can demonstrate their sustainability efforts will benefit — whether it’s securing access to lending or government grants, participating in corporate supply chains as a preferred supplier or attracting and retaining climate-minded clients,” said Ms Lindenberg.
“We’re really proud to be partnering with Xero to simplify sustainability for small businesses via accurate data, personalised reports and actionable insights.”
Xero GM of practice management and partner experience Luis Sanchez agreed that businesses were waking up to their ESG responsibilities.
“ESG is huge and there is a lot of education that’s happening and a lot people are realising that they need to get smarter about that area, and that is the beauty of having an ecosystem where new innovations are coming at us all the time and it’s our pleasure to have partners like Cogo,” he said.
“I think that this is going to be an area where we are all learning a lot, but we look forward to driving more innovation in this space because it is here to stay.”
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