While the business & professional services sector is less carbon-intensive than industries like manufacturing, it still faces significant sustainability challenges in the UK’s shifting regulatory and market landscape.

A major challenge is the sector’s carbon footprint from buildings and travel. Despite a move toward hybrid working, many firms still maintain large office spaces that consume energy for lighting, heating, and cooling. In addition, business travel-particularly for client meetings and conferences-remains a key contributor to emissions, especially with international operations(1).

The increasing reliance on digital services also brings sustainability concerns. Cloud computing, data centres, and artificial intelligence tools consume vast amounts of electricity. While these technologies can drive efficiency, they also increase a firm’s indirect environmental impact, often without visibility or measurement(2).

Scope 3 emissions are another significant hurdle. These include emissions from suppliers, subcontractors, and client-related activities(3). As professional services firms often have complex supply chains involving IT providers, legal networks, and temporary staff, tracking and managing these emissions can be extremely difficult.

Moreover, ESG reporting expectations are rising. UK firms are under pressure to disclose environmental and social impacts not just to meet regulation but also to satisfy client and investor scrutiny. Many smaller firms lack the resources, tools, or knowledge to do this effectively(4).

Cultural change is also slow. In some firms, sustainability is still treated as a marketing or CSR function rather than an operational priority. Embedding environmental considerations into daily business processes and strategic decision-making remains a major challenge.

Finally, firms must navigate an increasingly complex regulatory environment, where expectations shift quickly and vary across jurisdictions-particularly for firms operating across the UK and EU.

Despite being service-oriented, the sector must still confront its indirect impacts and take meaningful action to stay ahead of regulations and stakeholder expectations.

Bibliography

1 From Assets to Emissions: Decoding the Financial Services Emissions Profile (Accessed May 2025) https://www.persefoni.com/en-gb/blog/financial-services-emissions-profile

2 AI is set to drive surging electricity demand from data centres while offering the potential to transform how the energy sector works (Accessed May 2025) https://www.iea.org/news/ai-is-set-to-drive-surging-electricity-demand-from-data-centres-while-offering-the-potential-to-transform-how-the-energy-sector-works

3 What are scope 1, 2 and 3 carbon emissions? (Accessed May 205) https://www.nationalgrid.com/stories/energy-explained/what-are-scope-1-2-3-carbon-emissions

4Upcoming UK Sustainability Regulations: What Your Business Needs to Know (Accessed May 2025) https://positiveplanet.uk/upcoming-uk-sustainability-regulations/