Process-first path to sustainable value: How Celonis operationalizes sustainability to deliver lasting impact

In today’s dynamic environment, the commitment to sustainability is no longer a peripheral concern but a central driver of corporate strategy, linking environmental responsibility with profitability. Celonis is positioned at the intersection of process intelligence and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) goals, working toward its mission to make processes work for people, companies, and the planet.

In December, Celonis published its Sustainability Report 2024. The report outlines how sustainability is embedded into our day-to-day operations and we can help our customers do the same, moving from retrospective reporting to proactive, continuous action. As Bastian Nominacher, Co-founder and Co-CEO, and Vanessa Candela, Chief Legal and Trust Officer, wrote in the report:

“The need for sustainability is urgent. Though quick-hit projects are exciting and have their place in any sustainability strategy, we’ve found that impactful sustainability gains tend to come from steadier, more incremental work that’s tied to business objectives and driven by passionate people over the long term. As the need to protect our planet becomes ever more important, we think it’s crucial to infuse sustainability into every habit and choice within the workplace.”

A foundation of internal climate action

Celonis' dedication to global climate targets starts with rigorously managing its own environmental footprint. This commitment is guided by the core value that "Earth is our Future" and formalized through a structured climate strategy aimed at rapid emission cuts.

Measuring and Reducing Corporate Emissions

Celonis annually measures its corporate greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions across all scopes in line with the GHG Protocol. In a world facing urgent climate change, the company has defined three key areas to advance its targets: Renewable Energy, Mission-Aligned Suppliers, and Smart & Green Travel.

• Science-Based Targets (SBTi) Alignment: Celonis is committed to a 42% absolute reduction in Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions by FY2031 from a FY2024 base year. Furthermore, the company aims to reduce Scope 3 GHG emissions from business travel by 51.6% per FTE and ensure that over 50% of its suppliers by emissions have science-based targets by FY2030. These near-term targets have been approved by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) and align with the Paris Agreement's goal to limit global warming to 1.5°C.
• Renewable Energy Transition: Celonis is aggressively decarbonizing its Scope 1 and 2 emissions by cutting fossil fuel use and increasing renewable electricity consumption. For its office consumption, the company achieved 100% renewable electricity in FY2025 through the purchase of Energy Attribute Certificates (EACs). Additionally, the company is phasing out its company-owned vehicle fleet by the end of 2030, and in FY2025 alone, vehicle fuel consumption dropped by 20% compared to the prior year.
• Beyond the Value Chain: Recognizing that emission reduction efforts alone are insufficient to meet net-zero goals, Celonis actively invests in high-quality carbon removal projects to drive global climate action. This Climate Contribution is in addition to emission reduction efforts and focuses on technologies and methods to absorb CO2 from the atmosphere. In FY2025, Celonis financed the removal of 6,500 tonnes of CO2 by purchasing and retiring carbon credits from four climate projects.

Empowering a Culture of Impact

Celonis fosters a culture of sustainability and community engagement, empowering employees—or "Celonauts"—to act as agents of change.

• Global Impact Days: Every Celonaut is given time each year—at least three days—to step away from their daily work and focus on creating impact through various initiatives. These Impact Days align with the company's core mission: making processes work for people, companies, and the planet. Activities range from hackathons focused on sustainability goals to local community support and environmental cleanups. In FY2025, Celonauts contributed more than 6,100 hours of service through over 150 projects.
• Celonis4Sustainability: This internal initiative empowers a global network of local sustainability communities to translate the corporate strategy into local action. These champions share best practices and act as sounding boards and project accelerators, ensuring sustainability is embraced at every level of the organization.

“We’re proud to continue our tradition of transparency by sharing honest results from Celonis on our ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) goals — where we’re on track and where we have room to improve,” wrote Naminacher and Candela.” This report also covers how Celonis is helping customers and partners with their own ESG initiatives, from efficiency gains to greener logistics and beyond.”

Watch our on-demand Sustainability Transformation Week webinars to learn how the Celonis Sustainability Layer can not only help you meet ESG goals, but also drive greater value for your organization.

Operationalizing sustainability for customers

The Celonis Process Intelligence Platform is uniquely designed to solve the "great disconnect" that exists in many businesses where operational data is scattered across complex systems. By creating a digital twin of business operations and enriching it with sustainability data and knowledge—like emission factors and supplier ratings—Celonis goes beyond sustainability reporting, providing actionable insights, and driving continuous process improvements. This approach, called the Celonis Sustainability Solution Suite, enables companies to align sustainability with profitability without requiring in-depth sustainability expertise.

“Sustainability doesn’t need to be at odds with profitability,” wrote Naminacher and Candela. “We’ve spent decades witnessing how, when business processes and practices are optimized, greater sustainability often comes as a natural result alongside profits. Because when processes work, progress often follows.”

Celonis offers specific, out-of-the-box applications in collaboration with leading partners to address key sustainability challenges:

• Shipping Emissions App: This app tackles one of the largest opportunities for carbon reduction in the supply chain. It integrates shipping data from Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) or Transportation Management (TM) systems with industry-approved carbon emission factors provided by Climatiq. By running simulations, such as changing transport modes or switching fuel sources, users can pinpoint areas for the greatest carbon-saving potential.
• Material Emissions App: Critical for tackling Scope 3 emissions from procured goods and services, this app connects procurement data with supplier-specific primary and secondary emissions data from Climatiq's Carbon Intelligence Engine. It provides a scalable solution for measuring, analyzing, and ultimately reducing Scope 3 emissions by identifying high-emission areas and automating supplier/material selection based on sustainability factors.
• Sustainable Spend App: Procurement teams face the complex task of integrating sustainability criteria into supplier evaluation. The Sustainable Spend App offers a single solution to view, prioritize, and efficiently manage suppliers based on their sustainability ratings (provided by IntegrityNext or EcoVadis). Users can automatically flag and prioritize suppliers without ratings, streamline requests for new assessments, and thus actively manage their supply chain for compliance and sustainability performance.
• CBAM App Powered by Ventum: The CBAM Control App helps sustainability and procurement teams navigate the complexities of the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM). Orders affected by the regulation are identified automatically, and surveys are sent to suppliers to gather the required data. The solution validates incoming surveys and generates compliance reports automatically.

Through these applications, the Celonis Process Intelligence Platform empowers customers to proactively manage emissions, simplify due diligence for regulations like the German Supply Chain Due Diligence Act (SCDDA) and the EU Supply Chain Act (CSDDD), and continuously optimize operations that benefit the top, bottom, and green lines.

Making processes work for a sustainable future

The future of business demands a shift where sustainability and profitability are no longer opposing forces but inextricably linked outcomes of operational excellence. Celonis lives this vision through its rigorous internal Sustainability Program and its commitment to nurturing a global culture of impact.

By offering the Process Intelligence Platform and specialized Sustainability Solution Suite, Celonis provides the necessary process context and actionable intelligence to rewire business operations. This holistic, data-driven approach ensures that businesses can not only meet immediate regulatory and stakeholder demands but can actively transform their processes to create lasting value for people, companies, and the planet—minimizing their footprint, fostering inclusivity, and building trust.

Discover how Process Intelligence can power your organization’s ESG goals and operationalize your sustainability strategy and download the full Celonis Sustainability Report 2024.