ESTABLISHING ESG STRATEGY AND HUMAN VALUES AT BOARD LEVEL
R&C: Could you explain why companies’ environmental, social and governance (ESG) strategies are increasingly important in today’s business world? What factors are compelling organisations to enhance performance in this area?
Zack: The days of share price as the sole measure of a company’s performance are over. Employees, customers, the general public, governments and the investor community are all now looking at the non-financial impacts organisations have. They are setting behavioural standards on everything from CO2 emissions to how well the company ensures there is no human trafficking in its supply chain. If an organisation wants to see its business grow and keep good people, it must look to environmental, social and governance (ESG) measures
R&C: To what extent has the global coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic served to highlight the ESG agenda and focus companies’ priorities?
Zack: The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic placed enormous pressure on organisations as they struggled to keep operating in the face of a range of challenges. They had to revisit everything from employee health and wellbeing, both physically and from a mental health standpoint, to new methods and vendors for sourcing goods. That inevitably led to thinking that extended well beyond profit and loss (P&L). At the same time, climate change has impacted business thinking, while social expectations continue to rise. So, while the pandemic had a major impact, it was far from alone in driving this transformation.
Apr-Jun 2022 Issue
Society of Corporate Compliance and Ethics & Health Care Compliance Association