Resources

NotReal is a design-driven creative studio focused on art direction, CGI, and animation. This award-winning studio makes high-end visual content for some of the biggest companies in the world, including Microsoft. 

‍

After working on several projects for Microsoft, NotReal was asked to go through the carbon accounting process to support Microsoft’s supply chain sustainability programs. 

‍

Tasked with starting their carbon accounting journey, NotReal reached out to Green Project. 

‍

We spoke with Roberto Connolly, Executive Producer and Partner at NotReal about his engagement with Microsoft and Green Project, and how he’s thinking about sustainability as he grows his SMB business. 

‍

A large request for a boutique company

‍

“We are a growing company,” said Roberto. “And we've been working with a lot of big tech companies lately. Microsoft asked us to report on our carbon footprint and invited us to a webinar to explain the process and what they needed to support their sustainability initiatives.”

‍

“We’re very proud of getting to this point. We’ve been doing a lot of work for Microsoft for the last couple of years, and being able to grow there has meant a lot to us. It means we are doing things right.”

‍

As a growing design boutique, NotReal had not thought about their carbon footprint until the request from Microsoft came in. 

‍

“We thought about it and understood that, even though we are a boutique, we still need to be aware of our footprint and keep it in mind as we grow so we can manage it,” Roberto said. “It makes sense that large companies have to reduce their emissions and try to have greener processes across their suppliers.” 

‍

But understanding Microsoft’s request was only the first step. The next step for NotReal was to deliver on it in a timely and accurate manner. 

‍

“We don’t have a dedicated department for this,” Roberto said. “This is different from what we do every day in terms of production and design — it’s not our expertise. That’s why working with an external partner was the best thing for us.” 

‍

Green Project made things simple

‍

Once NotReal made the decision to look for a carbon accounting partner, how and why did they decide to go with Green Project? 

‍

“Green Project was on a list of suggested partners that Microsoft gave us,” Roberto said. “We asked for a few quotations and demos and Green Project seemed to have a very polished system. We spoke with other providers but the ease-of-use of the Green Project platform helped us make our decision.” 

‍

Green Project is featured in the Microsoft AppSource & Azure Marketplace as a trusted provider. “The challenges facing our planet today require bold action and innovative solutions,” said Michelle Lancaster, Senior Director of Global Sustainability Go To Market & Strategy at Microsoft. “That’s why we are proud to be working with Green Project to drive meaningful change and accelerate progress with small and medium companies towards a more sustainable future.”  

‍

In addition to Green Project’s streamlined carbon accounting platform, all customers receive a dedicated sustainability manager. 

‍

“We didn’t know how to calculate different things or track down all the different information that is needed,” Roberto said. “Our Green Project sustainability manager has been very supportive and helpful. Whenever we didn’t have a piece of information, she helped us figure it out and guided us through everything.” 

‍

“It was a relatively fast process. We had to search for some information that was requested and of course we had to do some work, but we trust Green Project’s expertise and they’re doing all the calculations for us so we can generate a final report for Microsoft.” 

‍

A path forward for supply chain carbon accounting

‍

Microsoft isn’t NotReal’s only customer. With their carbon footprint in hand, NotReal can meet reporting requirements for other large customers and continue to grow their business. 

‍

“Most of these big companies — these worldwide companies — request this kind of compliance,” Roberto said. “So if another client requests something similar, the work we have already done will save us a lot of time and effort in moving forward there.” 

‍

Understanding your carbon footprint is the first step towards managing and mitigating emissions. 

‍

“If we grow and hire more people and buy more computers, our footprint will get bigger and bigger. We’re aware that we’ll have to manage our emissions as we grow our business. Whenever it’s time to reduce our footprint, we’ll do our best to comply — we are in favor of sustainability.”

‍

“This is our first experience with this kind of process, and the next step is understanding what can be lowered or reduced and how we want to do it. But the current stage is just getting our diagnosis. And once we’re beyond that, we can start thinking about making things greener.” 

‍

‍Get in touch with Green Project to learn why we’re Microsoft’s partner for SMB carbon accounting and ESG reporting.

‍