2024 EHS Global Survey: Buyers Are Primed For New-Wave Innovation

2024 EHS Global Survey: Buyers Are Primed For New-Wave Innovation

Verdantix has released the 2024 iteration of its EHS global corporate survey, enabling EHS professionals to benchmark their plans against peers and technology providers to make data-based planning decisions. The survey explores wide-ranging topics, spanning long-term operational and technology EHS priorities; the impact of broadening chemical, ESG and sustainability regulations; 2025 budget allocations; EHS digital strategy trends; technology deployment plans; and attitudes towards AI.

This year, a major focal point of the study is to understand corporate EHS digitization strategies and priorities over the next two years. The survey data show that firms are ready to reassess their digital ecosystems and start implementing upgrades in pursuit of EHS excellence.

Several factors are allowing this. Firstly, 73% of EHS executives are expecting budget increases in the next 12 months and 38% will make double-digit percentage year-on-year increases, indicating room for greater expenditure on transformational projects, such as EHS software procurement. EHS functions are also prioritizing strategic initiatives that require advanced technology ecosystems. For instance, respondents indicated that proactively addressing risk, increasing use of real-time data feeds, and piloting EHS technologies will be key goals over the next two years. Thirdly, bolstered budgets are coinciding with a flurry of recent EHS technology innovation. Verdantix finds that buyers are taking note of EHS technology market advancements, encouraging some to take the plunge on rip-and-replace upgrades. The EHS software market is witnessing the continued release of AI features as vendors jostle for position as chief innovator. To name just a few examples: Benchmark Gensuite has invested heavily in AI feature releases, Intenseye raised $65 million Series B funding in August 2023, HSI released in-platform AI in January 2024, and Evotix introduced new AI features in June. Combined, these factors are powerful drivers of digital change.

Broader digital strategies are shifting due to buyer readiness for innovation and a desire to proactively manage risk. Encouragingly, the 2024 EHS global corporate survey finds that firms’ top priority when building a strategy is improving overall EHS performance, rather than leveraging software procurement as a cost-cutting exercise. Nearly two-fifths (39%) of respondents rank improving EHS performance as their number one priority. Beyond performance enhancement, decision-makers noted increasing use of mobility, emerging technologies and improving integration with enterprise software as critical outcomes of digital projects.

Given the pace of AI development, the next three years may represent a step change in EHS technology intelligence and sophistication – as is much needed for over-burdened EHS professionals. To stay informed on EHS technology – including corporate priorities, detailed spend plans and technology usage – read the full report Global Corporate Survey 2024: EHS Budgets, Priorities And Tech Preferences, and visit the Verdantix research portal.