Does Green IT Matter? Analysis of the Relationship between Green IT and Grid Technology from a Resource-Based View Perspective

Due to the significant increase in IT-related power consumption and the resulting higher CO2 emissions, Green IT has gained considerable attention in industry and society in recent years. Green IT as an engineering paradigm defines the multi-faceted, global effort to reduce power consumption and the promotion of environmental sustainability. This encompasses the manufacturing and purchasing of energy efficient IT equipment, the efficient operation and utilization of hardware devices, as well as its proper disposal. This article depicts the results of an analytical approach to find parallels between Green IT requirements and the economical and ecological benefits of Grid technology implementation. Therefore, the main objective of this article is to illustrate how Grid technology materializes the Green IT paradigm and its inherent benefits. In addition, by applying the Resource-Based View to Green IT, the article illustrates that the assimilation of a Green Grid infrastructure leads to increased competitiveness of enterprises in the market.