As the world gets more and more interconnected, corporate responsibility and sustainability are more important than ever for a company’s success. 

Whereas in previous decades, a company’s value was mainly linked to physical assets like property and equipment, now it is intangible assets like branding, relationships, and ideas that define a business. 

The growing trend toward ESG measurements is, in part, a response to that change. Attractive businesses must now be more sensitive than ever to how they are perceived as members of a larger corporate environment. 

More and more companies understand the necessity to publish ESG reports detailing their performance on environmental, social and governance metrics. This comes from an awareness that steps like reducing their carbon footprint; improving diversity and gender equality in the workforce, and maintaining an ethical value chain for suppliers and customers display a level of social responsibility that is demanded by customers, partners and investors. 

What are people doing on ESG?

Many businesses are starting to figure out their ESG strategies. It’s not always easy to start, or know what the business is ready to do. Taking on an ESG programme can seem like a big challenge, but actually many businesses are already doing a lot on ESG already, and a big part of getting started is pulling together existing data.

On our recent webinar on How to Implement an ESG programme, we surveyed over a hundred leading businesses and law firms on what they are doing around ESG.

What is carbon literacy?

Carbon literacy means making people aware of the cost of climate change in everyday activities, and how emissions of carbon and other greenhouse gasses into the atmosphere can be reduced with individual, organisational and structural changes.

Carbon literacy is more than just hot air. It focuses teams to understand climate change from a scientific level. Climate change is one of the greatest threats to human life, with climate change already causing severe weather disruption around the world and putting millions of people at risk from extreme weather events. Carbon literacy helps a business to understand what that means, and what can be done.

What is an Environmental, Social, Governance (ESG) Committee?

An ESG committee has overall responsibility for the effective operation of a company’s ESG policy, and has delegated responsibility for overseeing its implementation. The committee reviews data from across the business and then filters and summarises it for the board. The ESG committee is responsible for writing the ESG content in the company’s annual report and producing all information relating to ESG disclosures.

How Do You Know if Your Business is Ready to form an ESG Committee?

Forming an ESG committee is a crucial step to get started on your ESG journey. It can be informal and ad hoc, but bringing in more than one person or department will help to deliver on your ESG goals.

Before you decide to form an ESG committee, you should think about your ESG maturity. Understanding where your business sits on the ESG maturity framework will help ensure that you are doing things in the right order and at the right time. There’s no point in forming an ESG committee for example if your business is not planning any investment whatsoever in ESG efforts.

It depends on how committed your business is to ESG

ESG consultants help companies determine what actions they should take to improve and build on their ESG efforts. They can undertake risk assessments, due diligence and impact assessments, as well as help to prepare reports and measure impacts.

They can also help to develop the right structures and processes inside the organisation if you are preparing for ESG disclosures. If you’re just getting started with ESG, you should also read our explanatory guide: ESG: What Businesses Need to Know. That guide provides a summary of the key terms and concepts you should be aware of before diving into ESG in more depth.

The gig economy in Europe

The gig economy in Europe, also known as the platform economy or sharing economy, has experienced significant growth in recent years. It refers to a labour market characterised by short-term, flexible, and on-demand work arrangements facilitated by digital platforms. One key aspect of the gig economy in Europe is the prevalence of online platforms that connect workers with customers, such as Uber, Deliveroo, and TaskRabbit. These platforms provide individuals with opportunities to earn income by offering their services in various fields, including transportation, food delivery, and household tasks.

What are gig economy workers?

Gig economy workers, also known as gig workers or platform workers, are individuals who participate in the gig economy. They are typically independent contractors or freelancers who perform short-term, flexible, and on-demand work for various digital platforms or online marketplaces.