Message from our CEO & CTO
We must never cease from striving for a sustainable and inclusive world. The future depends on our individual and collective ability to address the pressing challenges of our time. We have entered a new era of computing, the Cognitive Era, marked by global connectivity, big computing power, large data sets, Internet of Things (IoT), and latest models driving new aspects of artificial intelligence (AI). No company will ever finish digitizing, because innovators keep innovating, and companies find new applications for new digital capabilities. It is crucial that we embrace innovation to create the sustainable and inclusive world that is possible.
In this year’s report, we share OpenText’s progress, initiatives, and commitments to making a positive impact on our environment, empowering diverse voices, and upholding the highest standards of integrity. Through our Zero-In Initiative, our guiding framework for all our Environmental, Social & Governance (ESG) efforts, we strive to create a future where our actions leave zero footprint, where barriers are broken down, and where compromise is non-existent when it comes to our core values. We are on a transformative journey towards a more sustainable, equitable, and prosperous world. We are also excited about the positive impacts that AI can have against our important priorities.
2022 was another year of change. The war in the Ukraine escalated, supply chains were radically disrupted, the planet’s long-term warming trend continued with NASA calling 2022 the fifth warmest year on record[1], and the social aspects of COVID-19 ended.
Researchers now predict that the Earth will surpass the 1.5-degree Celsius global warming threshold by 2027.[2] Climate-related emergencies are reverberating around the world.
Economically it was an uneven year, with certain economies remaining robust, worries of a recession increased, the cost of living skyrocketed, dramatically affecting the purchasing power of the poor and those living on a fixed income. Change is the only constant. However, we can choose how we respond to change—and we are choosing to respond with innovation, technology, and humanity.
Over the next five years, we will experience 20 years of progress. By 2030, we believe all businesses will be digitally reshaped. Every industry will undergo information-led transformation, leading to widespread changes, including new business models, talent shifts, adaptation to new rules, and the pursuit of new opportunities. I call this Business 2030.
The forces behind this transformation are technology-driven: fast-evolving, generative AI with incredible potential in Large Language Models (LLMs), massive data sets, increases in rates of automation, computing power, and network capacity. Opportunities created by virtual reality and the IoT. These tech drivers expand and intensify the power of information. And with the right information, anything is possible.
Business 2030: Technology for the greater good
Climate change is the biggest issue of our time and a priority for OpenText. The business world is waking up to this truth, and we see fundamental change happening across industries and borders.
We are helping our customers unleash exponential innovation—through information, automation, and the cloud—so that the digital world can help protect our physical one. Our future cloud strategy, and roadmap with climate innovations, will help keep sustainability capabilities at the forefront.
In the past year, our corporate giving efforts supported education and innovation for global change, with a focus on children, family, and disaster relief. To improve the quality of life for those around us, we invested thousands of volunteer hours, contributed more than a million dollars, delivered millions of meals, funded schools in Poland for displaced Ukrainian children, supported employees who have stepped up to house refugees, and ensured health care benefits for our employees where government restrictions were imposed. As we continue to make meaningful impact, in the communities where our employees live and work, we will further embrace the UN Sustainable Development Goals to contribute to interconnected issues facing the planet.
We have also renewed our commitment to the UN Global Compact and continue to increase our credibility and transparency for global sustainability standards by reporting with reference to the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI).
Be bold for change
Last year, we announced our Zero-In Initiative, a framework that is built with measurable, values-driven goals.
In pursuit of our Zero-In Initiative, we established ambitious targets that drive our efforts across all its dimensions. Our Zero-In program efforts center on fairness and equity through sustainability and inclusion. I am proud of this focus and am also immensely enthusiastic about how the revolutionary potential of AI will give us the opportunity to accelerate our Zero-In program, to build a better and stronger company and be a better and stronger example of fairness, inclusion, sustainability, and value-based design. AI holds the potential to reshape our world, improve quality of life, and propel us into a future where intelligent systems work hand in hand with human ingenuity. I look forward to these new possibilities and the transformational impact AI can have on a sustainable and just future.
Zero Footprint: Net-zero by 2040
One of the most effective ways to combat climate change is to reduce our carbon footprint. We have committed to a 50% reduction by 2030 and net-zero by 2040, as well as zero waste to landfill from operations by 2030. Becoming a net-zero company requires a collective effort, and we are working with global teams to identify opportunities to reduce waste and develop plans for more energy-efficient projects.
We strive for Zero Footprint in every possible way, and this includes helping our customers transform their businesses, transition to the cloud, and become Climate Innovators. Last year, OpenText launched its “Be a Climate Innovator” campaign to raise awareness about how companies can reduce their reliance on paper for a more sustainable future. Climate Innovators use their information advantage to positively impact the environment, preserve resources, and achieve ESG compliance. They rely on OpenText Information Management solutions to digitize the information running their businesses, ensure ethical supply chains, and improve energy efficiency.
Zero Barriers: Elevate lives by breaking down barriers
We believe that every voice should be heard, and that diversity accelerates innovation. We strive to break down barriers, and to this end, by 2030, we pledge to have a majority ethnically diverse workforce, 50/50 gender parity in key roles, and 40% of women in leadership positions at all management levels. We are also evolving our Equity, Diversity & Inclusion goals to incorporate value-based design. This will help us develop the most inclusive software possible, making it representative of those who contribute to and use it, and helping to create a more accessible world. We also started new programs, on value-based software design.
Our education and training programs—from Indigenous and Black student internships to engineering internships for women in India—are transforming lives through experience, education, and mentorship opportunities. We host annual global awareness events, celebrating Black History Month, International Women’s Day, Truth and Reconciliation, and Pride. Internally, we support employee growth with Career Week, analyze and update our policies on a continual basis to recruit and hire more inclusively, and our employee networks bring together our diverse communities for advocacy, awareness, and support.
We understand that supporting the well-being of our employees and their families is central to our success and offer benefits, insurance, fitness, mental health support, and other programs to support a work/life balance. Integrating wellness into our culture helps improve productivity and retention and deepens our employees’ sense of value within the company. It is our priority to ensure that every individual at OpenText feels valued and safe to contribute as their most authentic self.
Zero Compromise: Focus on what matters most
Our Zero-In Initiative helps us strike a balance between growth and sustainability. I am optimistic that our efforts are moving in the right direction.
Our Zero-In goals are rooted in science, transparency, and integrity to support accountability and foster a culture of tech for good. High standards, ethical responsibility, and core values—we refuse to compromise on what matters most.
And that includes our technology. When it comes to protecting data against security threats and mitigating risk, there are zero compromises. Our customers trust us with their data, and it is our number-one responsibility to protect it ethically, and with integrity.
Positioned for future growth
In the second half of our Fiscal 2023, we acquired Micro Focus as an expansion of our mission to power and protect customer information. We have now successfully integrated the Micro Focus product portfolio, talent, and global presence into the OpenText family, and today we are over 24,000 employees strong.
The heart of our culture remains our unwavering commitment to customer success. We are delivering on our promise to help customers secure their operations, gain more insight into their information, and better manage an increasingly hybrid and complicated digital fabric using next-generation tools like cybersecurity, digital operations management, application automation and delivery, and AI and analytics.
The Cognitive Era is reshaping the world with technology and building the markets of the future. Humans are moving closer to reaching new summits with the support of increasingly powerful AI. We are becoming even more interconnected as the digital flow of goods, people, capital, and ideas increases across the globe.
At OpenText, we will innovate to enhance productivity, promote prosperity for all, and ensure sustainability for generations to come—and we will apply our principles through value-based software design—to help us keep exploring.
Mark J. Barrenechea
OpenText CEO and CTO