Across every industry, organizations are under increasing pressure to reduce the environmental impact of their IT. From lowering lifecycle emissions to handling end-of-life devices securely and responsibly, the goals are clear. However, turning sustainability promises into measurable progress is anything but simple. Complex supply chains, fragmented regulations, budget constraints and a lack of practical tools can make even the best-intentioned commitments difficult to keep.
Fortunately, support is available to help organizations embed sustainability into every stage of their IT lifecycle, from procurement to retirement. Lenovo’s integrated capabilities help our customers to address the most pressing ESG-related needs and future-proof their businesses in the process.
First challenge: gaining visibility into IT emissions
One of the biggest obstacles organizations face is visibility. Many lack a clear, timely understanding of their IT-related emissions and practical ways to reduce them. That is where Lenovo Intelligent Sustainability Solutions Advisor (LISSA) comes in.
LISSA was designed to lower the barriers to sustainability decision-making. Powered by a combination of AI and human expertise, it helps organizations understand their emissions footprint and identify tailored pathways to reduce it.
What sets LISSA apart is the speed and depth of the insights it delivers. Customers can now receive tailored sustainability insights in under 15 minutes. This time saving allows enterprises to model multiple decarbonization pathways, from extending device lifecycles and optimizing packaging to shifting logistics and exploring as-a-Service models. With this clarity, IT leaders can align decisions directly with ESG goals and broader business strategy.
Another powerful element of LISSA is its embedded AI-powered knowledge assistant. Visibility into emissions is only valuable if it can be understood and acted upon. The AI-powered knowledge assistant makes that possible by breaking down complex sustainability topics into clear, practical guidance for both customers and our teams. It ensures sustainability insights aren’t just numbers on a page but part of a consistent, confident conversation about next steps.
Second challenge: managing IT assets at end-of-life
Another challenge is responsible end-of-life management. Disposing of IT assets securely and sustainably at scale is complex, especially across diverse brands and geographies. Many organizations struggle to balance compliance with efficiency, making the process time-consuming and resource intensive. Asset Recovery Services (ARS) addresses this head-on.
ARS is a global, brand-agnostic IT recovery service operating in 48 markets. It provides easy logistics, secure data erasure, recycling and resale across all device types. Since 2020, Lenovo has helped customers recycle or reuse over 94,000 metric tons of IT equipment, equivalent to more than 87 million ThinkPads, and processed upwards of one million assets.
In the past year, we have introduced three major innovations within ARS. Prepaid service credits allow organizations to proactively plan IT retirement across regions and device types, offering unprecedented flexibility. Flexible credit on account feature allows customers to reinvest the potential recovered value from assets to fund other IT innovations without stretching their budgets. And lastly, the new Asset Manager feature within the Lenovo Service Connect portal replaces manual spreadsheets with real-time automation. Customers can now track warranties, schedule pickups, download compliance certificates and view circular economy impact statements with ease.
Together, these enhancements make asset recovery predictable, scalable and strategically valuable, turning what was once a burden into a business advantage.
Recognition along the way
The progress we’ve made hasn’t gone unnoticed. At the BIG Sustainability Awards 2025, LISSA was named Sustainability Initiative of the Year and Lenovo Asset Recovery Services was awarded Sustainability Service of the Year. I’m proud of that recognition because it shows that the work we’re doing has made a real impact for our customers.
However, the awards are not the finish line but simply milestones on a much longer journey. The challenges businesses face around IT sustainability aren’t going away; they’re only intensifying. LISSA and ARS will continue to evolve, to give organizations the clarity, tools, and flexibility they need to build sustainability into every stage of the IT lifecycle.
For more information about Lenovo Sustainability Services, visit https://www.lenovo.com/us/en/solutions/sustainability-solutions/