Supporting Climate Neutrality through Digital Innovation: Software Selection Methodology for the Net Zero Strategy of an Italian Multi-Utility

This thesis analyses the path towards Net Zero and the implications this entails for businesses, with particular reference to the case of a leading Italian multi-utility, hereinafter referred to as Alpha Group. The transition to climate neutrality is part of a regulatory framework that is continuously evolving, starting from the 2015 Paris Agreement, passing through the 2019 Green Deal and leading to the most recent legislative initiatives, such as the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) and the European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS). Those measures, even if aimed at guaranteeing major transparency and responsibility, place significant burdens on companies, which must allocate increasing resources to collecting and managing sustainability data. This is where the debate on maintaining competitiveness arises: while stakeholders require concrete and measurable actions, regulatory compliance is very demanding in terms of time, effort, and costs. In this context, sustainability has become not only a compliance challenge but also a driver of innovation and competitiveness, pushing companies to integrate environmental and social considerations into their strategic and operational models. The first part of the thesis provides a comprehensive overview of the European regulatory and strategic framework for sustainability, highlighting how EU policies have evolved from the first environmental initiatives to the European Green Deal and the Net Zero Strategy. It also analyses the rise of ESG criteria as a paradigm for sustainable competitiveness and the legislative transition from the Non Financial Reporting Directive to the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive and the European Sustainability Reporting Standards, which have made sustainability reporting a binding and standardized process for European Companies. The second part focuses on the operational dimension of climate neutrality, examining the methodological integration between the Greenhouse gases Protocol and the ESRS E1 – Climate Change standard, and illustrating how digitalization has become essential to ensure quality and traceability of sustainable information. The final part of the thesis presents the software selection project developed with PwC for Alpha Group, aimed at identifying the most suitable digital solution to support the company’s Net Zero Strategy. The project follows the PwC Software Selection Methodology, which combines business needs analysis, requirement definition, market scouting and vendor evaluation. Through this work, the thesis demonstrates how digital transformation and sustainability are increasingly interdependent: the former provides the tools, the latter the purpose. Together, they enable companies to enhance data accuracy, strengthen governance, and accelerate their progress towards climate neutrality while maintaining long-term competitiveness.