“Over the long-term, environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues–ranging from climate change to diversity to board effectiveness–have real and quantifiable financial impacts…” noted BlackRock chief executive Larry Fink in the wake of the Paris Climate agreement, following the United Nations’ adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals.

ESG is becoming increasingly important to investors when considering where to put their money, reflecting a new ‘stakeholder-led agenda’ in the corporate boardroom. Examples of ESG could include specific elements such as:

• (E) Data on an organisation’s carbon emissions;
• (S) Diversity and inclusion policies; and
• (G) Disclosing information on companies’ corporate behaviour.

Having mission-led processes creates mutual value for companies and their shareholders, delivering positive returns on the planet, people, and for overall business outcomes.

When considering an investment, socially-conscious companies with ESG accreditations are likely to perform well with investors who consider sustainability to be a key indicator for long-term success and profitability, alongside a desire to invest in businesses with whom they share similar values. 

It is expected that ESG will continue to emerge as a key theme in investment over the next decade, underpinning a lot of the conversations and debates surrounding corporate business models.

How can Datactics Help?

Given that much of ESG is fundamentally a data quality and reporting challenge, applying a business user-focused platform with high configurability and connectivity to external and internal data sources makes perfect sense. Contact us if you are exploring how data quality management can benefit your ESG approach.