A next-gen carbon accounting tool

I worked with Carbon Intelligence to create a vision for their internal consulting team that enabled them to break out of an Excel-based workflow.

The challenge

Calculating an organisation’s carbon footprint is no easy task. We’re talking big orgs, like Aviva PLC with their 3,000+ real estate portfolio. The consultants at Carbon Intelligence were reaching the limits of an Excel-based workflow. We set about changing this by:

• assembling a cross-functional working group of design, engineering, and carbon consultants;
• co-designing a new workflow;
• creating a vision for a suite of internal consulting tools.

Approach

We created a collaborative process that blurred the lines between product and consulting. Dismissing the previous boundaries that separated the two functions to give us a deeper understanding of the complexities of carbon accounting.

Working alongside consultants we mapped out existing and future workflows, co-designed new tools and iteratively reimagined their entire process.

Solution

Here’s what we came up with, in plain english:

• A way for consultants to visualise the hierarchy of an organisations buildings, spaces within their buildings, and key activities like travel. The “org map” enabled consultants to better understand the make-up of the client’s carbon emissions.
• A tool to quickly assign and manage different categories of emissions to the entities on the “org map”. Which is an industry standard way of understand types of emissions and enables benchmarking and tracking.

Result

A new future for consultants, enabled and supported by technology. One designed to make their day-to-day radically more efficient so they can do more impactful work.

Product team

Charlotte Barrons · Product Designer Sam Judge · Product Designer Ahmed Abouargub · Product Designer Mayur Bapodra · Lead Developer Chris Moisan · CPO