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.

What does an ESG consultant do?

ESG consultants are supposed to help your organisation understand ESG, and crucially, work towards an end goal. This is usually disclosures in an annual report, or specific ESG disclosures to a market.

Most, if not all, ESG-related disclosures are or could be material. It’s important that any disclosures be vetted using the same process as sharing profit and loss information. Ideally, ESG disclosures should stand up to an audit review with identifiable sources, tracking and defined metrics. 

An ESG consultant might also:

• Clarify the internal ESG vision, mission statement, and priorities
• Identify stakeholders motivations and expectations during fundraising
• Create an ESG policy and implementation framework
• Construct an ESG action plan to fit present and future goals
• Define ESG Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) to measure the ESG performance across the business
• Develop industry trend reviews and risk assessments
• Source ESG training

Hiring an ESG consultant

ESG consultant job description

While it is a relatively new position, ESG consultants are becoming more popular with businesses and investors as ESG reporting becomes mandatory in some places and as companies realise that a good ESG score is good for business, as well as being good for the world. 

As ESG consultant helps businesses do sustainability reporting correctly, assists businesses in reviewing their operations and enriching their operational strategy.

Strong analytical and communication skills are essential for this role which includes responsibility for project delivery, business development, client management and thought leadership.

Who hires ESG consultants?

A growing number of businesses are hiring ESG consultants to do things such as ESG screening, engagement with companies and report preparation. As more and more organisations begin to do ESG reporting, they’ll also need an ESG department and team, and a consultant can help assess how well companies are performing, what their level of risk is, and how to move forward with ESG compliance.

What questions should I ask my ESG consultant?

Before hiring a consultant, here are some relevant questions to ask:

• What kind of experience do you have in ESG and ESG consulting?
• Where did you gain that experience?
• How have you helped firms in the past with sustainability-related needs?

You’ve now hired an ESG Consultant; what now?

Hiring an ESG consultant is not enough in and of itself. An ESG consultant who does not have the executive team’s backing or does not have significant authority or resources to operate will not be successful. Indeed, hiring an ESG consultant but doing nothing else to embed sustainability into the organization could be a sign of “greenwashing,” where companies spend time and energy in order to market themselves as sustainable but do nothing to actually change their practices. In short, an ESG consultant can be a good hire only if your business is ready to commit to concrete ESG steps.

But hiring an ESG consultant is not enough in and of itself. An ESG consultant who does not have the executive team’s backing or does not have significant authority or resources to operate will not be successful. Indeed, hiring an ESG consultant but doing nothing else to embed sustainability into the organisation could be a sign of “greenwashing,” where companies spend time and energy in order to market themselves as sustainable but do nothing to actually change their practices. 

In short, an ESG consultant can be a good hire only if your business is ready to commit to concrete ESG steps.

VinciWorks’ ESG compliance solution

Our ESG compliance solution allows each business to choose the most relevant topics to cover in their ESG compliance package. There is no one-size-fits-all, so risk managers can tailor-build their own reporting dashboards, customise their own training or choose the products from our library. We will work with you to create a multi-year ESG plan according to the ESG framework that works for your organisation.

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