Case Study
United for Net-Zero: Lenovo’s 360 Circle for Collaborative Climate Action
Empowering a global partner ecosystem to align with Net-Zero targets through transparent data and collective action.
The challenge
Lenovo recognized a pressing challenge: managing and reducing Scope 3 emissions within its complex downstream partner ecosystem. These emissions, resulting from product use, transport, and end-of-life treatment, constituted a significant portion of Lenovo’s carbon footprint. Limited visibility into partner practices made it difficult to track progress and align with overarching sustainability goals.
To effectively address these emissions, Lenovo understood that internal efforts alone wouldn’t suffice. It needed to engage its vast network of downstream partners, fostering collaboration, transparency, and data-driven insights to create a clear path toward collective climate action.
Solution
In collaboration with ClimateChoice, Lenovo introduced the GHG Emissions & Strategy Community Benchmarking program as part of its Lenovo 260 Circle -an ambitious initiative aimed at transforming the sustainability efforts of its global supply chain network through empowering partners to evaluate, enhance, and accelerate their climate action through the following steps:
Data Analysis: Utilizing ClimateChoice’s Intelligence Platform, Lenovo assessed publicly available sustainability metrics across its partner ecosystem to pinpoint areas for improvement.
Secure Data Collection: Partners were invited to share additional primary climate data securely, enabling a more comprehensive view of individual performance and facilitating community-wide benchmarking.
Tailored Feedback: Each partner received targeted feedback and benchmarked assessments, along with actionable recommendations to improve their climate strategies.
Recognizing Leadership: Lenovo celebrated top-performing partners, fostering a culture of continuous improvement and sustainability leadership.
This partnership-driven, data-centric approach helped Lenovo transform challenges into opportunities for collective climate action. The program offered partners a clear roadmap for enhancing their sustainability efforts, ensuring every participant could make meaningful progress.
Results
The Lenovo 360 Circle initiative delivered tangible results for Lenovo and its partners:
Increased Transparency: Enhanced data visibility equipped partners with actionable insights to identify emission reduction opportunities and improve sustainability practices.
Fostered Collaboration: Lenovo’s engagement approach strengthened relationships with its partners, driving shared success in achieving Net-Zero targets.
Empowered a Sustainability-First Culture: By recognizing and rewarding exemplary efforts, Lenovo motivated partners to prioritize climate action and fostered a culture of continuous improvement.
Key Learnings
Lenovo’s initiative provided critical insights into driving sustainability across a diverse partner network:
Trust Through Transparency: Data-driven insights alleviated privacy concerns and motivated partner participation by showcasing clear, actionable outcomes.
Customized Support: Tailored feedback and improvement plans engaged partners at different stages of their sustainability journeys, ensuring inclusivity and impact.
Motivation Through Recognition: Celebrating high-performing partners inspired ongoing participation and elevated the initiative’s visibility.
Power of Collaboration: Aligning partners around shared goals amplified collective impact and demonstrated the value of partnership in tackling climate challenges.
Long-Term Vision: Lenovo’s commitment to Net-Zero by 2050 highlights the importance of sustained progress, strategy adaptation, and alignment with evolving climate science.
Conclusions
Lenovo’s success with ClimateChoice earned it a Gold rating, with the entire community achieving a Silver-equivalent rating - a testament to the collective impact and alignment towards sustainability goals.
With that the Lenovo 360 Circle initiative stands as a beacon of effective collaboration in addressing complex sustainability challenges. By fostering transparency, leveraging data-driven insights, and uniting its partner ecosystem, Lenovo is setting a new standard for collective climate leadership.
Be part of the conversation - Join #CTS2025
2025 marks the midpoint to the UN 2030 Agenda and Paris Agreement, emphasizing the urgency to move from targets to action. Inspired by Lenovo’s success, we invite you to join the Climate Transformation Summit #CTS2025 - the leading climate conference uniting procurement and sustainability experts, practitioners and decision-makers to jointly drive Scope 3 Action.
Join us in Berlin on June 4th and 5th. Visit our #CTS2025 website to learn more and get involved.
