"Too often, firms start with the expensive options before solving the basics," said Washburn.

Businesses also must balance the need for efficiency improvement with the requirement on technology to be reliable, he said. "Overzealous" datacentre and desktop greening "can put operations at risk if it compromises performance or reliability," he added.

Lastly, green IT managers should become comfortable "speaking the language of C-level executives", he suggested. This meant they would be able to place their IT plans in the context of other green strategies, such as fleet fuel efficiency, green product design and remote working.