But when we recently surveyed 500 businesses across Europe, only 22% said they have good control of their energy consumption, and only 14% said they have good control when it comes to staying resilient against energy market volatility. This is having a significant impact: 40% said that unpredictable energy costs are limiting their organisation’s growth trajectory.

A range of factors are at play. A tough macroeconomic environment is creating uncertainty over energy cost and supply. Ongoing regulatory changes are proving difficult to keep up with. The distanced post-pandemic workplace is making it harder to track and respond to energy demands. Growing pressure from stakeholders to decarbonise means organisations need to reevaluate the energy spectrum from the ground up.

Amid so much complexity – what steps are organisations taking to strengthen control of energy?

Our research found that there are three key focus areas:

• Organisations with greater confidence in their data deal better with energy management overall. Our results show that data leaders are more likely (by 27 percentage points) to feel they have good control over their energy consumption, compared with those with little confidence in their energy data.
• Onsite energy generation is proving a popular way to mitigate volatility. Two-fifths of the businesses we spoke to said the appeal of onsite generation was in its ability to mitigate volatility in the market. It’s easy to see why 63% of businesses said they intend to increase onsite generation capabilities over the next two years.
• Uninformed leaders are struggling to make the right investment decisions. Ineffective financial assessment frameworks are the number one factor delaying onsite generation. Re-education and reengagement of leadership is critical.

It all adds up to the need for a more assertive approach – one that’s focused on regaining control over an organisation’s energy costs and long-term sustainability.

To help you build the business case for a new strategy, download our report ‘How data, onsite generation and leadership strengthen energy control’. Inside you’ll find more information and recommendations on how to transition energy from a cost centre that drags on business growth to a resource that propels it.

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