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E.S.G. and Politics

by Lucas Gravina | Apr 12, 2023 | 2023, Archive, Blog, Externalities, Stakeholder Engagement

Companies across industries report on their commitment to E.S.G. as part of their mission to deliver a positive impact to society, but E.S.G. has attracted criticism in the political arena. Political conservative have taken issue with “woke capitalism,” accusing E.S.G. advocates of imposing their progressive views on businesses and society. Others argue that E.S.G. does not go far enough because it does not mandate that companies serve the public good as well as shareholder interests.

E.S.G. is not a substitute for broader societal and governmental solutions. It is, however, an effective and nonpartisan business planning and decision-making tool.

Have We Entered the Era of the Employee?

by Clear Strategy | Apr 7, 2023 | 2023, Archive, Blog, Externalities, Sustainable Business, Sustainable Design

The social isolation that resulted from the pandemic also had serious impacts on employee mental health, creating a new wave of opportunity for employers to respond to employee needs. In addition to mental health resources, mental health time off and shortened work weeks are innovative solutions that employers devised.

Liability for Environmental Damage

by Jo Anne Schwendinger | Mar 17, 2023 | 2023, Archive, Blog, Externalities, Sustainable Business

One of the headline news items coming out of COP27 in Sharm El-Sheik, Egypt, in November of 2022, was an agreement to set up a fund for payments to developing countries that suffer loss and damage from climate-driven events like flooding, droughts and wildfires. It...

ESG Investing: A Matter of Ethics, Financial Performance, or Both?

by Clear Strategy | Feb 28, 2023 | 2023, Archive, Blog, Reporting, Strategy

The use of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) metrics by the financial sector is growing through ESG investing. To understand the growth, it is helpful to consider what motivates their use. ESG investing can be divided into two camps. There are those who view...

The Scourge of Child Labor

by Clear Strategy | Feb 23, 2023 | 2023, Archive, Blog, Externalities, Impact Assessment, Reporting, Sustainable Business, Sustainable Design

As businesses become more complex, ESG considerations will become more important and the mitigation of risks such as child labor will become more difficult. However, by partnering with governments and local communities, engaging with stakeholder, and using technology to track and verify that their materials were not the product of child labor, businesses can begin to eradicate this scourge from their supply chains.

NIL and ESG

by Clear Strategy | Feb 15, 2023 | 2023, Archive, Blog, Externalities, Sustainable Design

As student athletes are introduced to the world of NIL (Name, Image, and Likeness) deals, Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) strategy is still a largely untapped resource and serves as an excellent way to maximize personal brand reputation and minimize associated risk. While the notion of ESG may not be standard in NIL discussions just yet, as students become increasingly valuable to brands and student influence begins to extend past collegiate years, recognition of the benefits of these strategies will lead to new opportunities for the usage of ESG.

ESG: AI and Sustainability

by Clear Strategy | Feb 15, 2023 | 2023, Archive, Blog, Externalities, Frameworks, Strategy, Sustainable Business

The article highlights the versatility of AI, explaining how recent developments allow it to go beyond simple customer service conversations and become a useful tool for investors and firms in their effort to stay efficient and modernized. While AI is commonly used to navigate large amounts of data, its applications are diverse, and different AI companies now narrow their training data in order to create more intelligent and specified machines. Upon its initial introduction to the industry, AI has the potential to make significant contributions to the sustainability of corporations, whether by automating and streamlining processes, reducing energy consumption, or reducing emissions.

The Future of Third-Party Risk Management

by Clear Strategy | Feb 6, 2023 | 2023, Archive, Blog, Externalities, Impact Assessment

In response to: https://informationsecuritybuzz.com/third-party-risk-management-why-2023-could-be-the-perfect-time-to-overhaul-your-tprm-program/ 2023 could be a pivotal year for the future of third-party risk management (TPRM) programs. Organizations are recognizing...

Building a Sustainable Supply Chain

by Jo Anne Schwendinger | Jan 27, 2023 | 2023, Archive, Blog, Externalities, Strategy, Sustainable Business

Bad surprises happen. Avoid them with due diligence. When they happen, plan to do better, and execute on your plan. Communicate your expectations to employees and suppliers. Verify, and continuously improve. Stay on a path to sustainability, and reach out to Clear Strategy for help.

Third-Party Risk Management

by Jo Anne Schwendinger | Dec 22, 2022 | 2022, Archive, Blog, Externalities, Impact Assessment, Strategy, Sustainable Business

In this blog we discuss how third-party risks affect your organization, and how ESG principles can help.

In today’s business landscape, you should be concerned not only with your own reputation and brand, but the reputations of your third party suppliers. Stakeholders are demanding transparency on ESG risks throughout their entire value chain, including you and your suppliers.

9 Steps to Take Now to Get Ready for the CSRD

by Jo Anne Schwendinger | Nov 23, 2022 | 2022, Archive, Blog, Externalities, Strategy, Sustainable Business, Sustainable Design

The European Council is expected to adopt the EU Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) this month, November 2022. The CSRD is intended “to foster sustainable and responsible corporate behaviour and to anchor human rights and environmental considerations in companies’ operations and corporate governance. The new rules will ensure that businesses address adverse impacts of their actions, including in their value chains inside and outside Europe.”

Here are nine steps your company will need to take to prepare for the CSRD.

The Perils of Perpetual Power

by Jo Anne Schwendinger | Nov 22, 2022 | 2022, Archive, Blog, Strategy, Sustainable Business, Sustainable Design

The Economist recently ran an article titled Facebook and the conglomerate curse, and it addresses the future of ESG . The article is about “Silicon Valley’s big five tech giants, Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta and Microsoft.” It comments on their drop in market value this year, swollen costs, and slowing core businesses, alongside the “near-absolute control” of the companies’ founders.

ESG Hot Topic: Do the Right Thing

by Jo Anne Schwendinger | Nov 9, 2022 | 2022, Archive, Blog, Externalities, Impact Assessment, Stakeholder Engagement, Strategy, Sustainable Business

If you are challenged by your boss, board, or shareholders, show them the the potential harm to others. Then show them the data that proves that the costs, and the length of time that you will continue to pay those costs, are too high and too long for you not to do the right thing.

Tired of the Same-old Business Journal? Look to the United Nations Global Compact.

by Jo Anne Schwendinger | Oct 26, 2022 | 2022, Archive, Blog, Externalities, Reporting, Sustainable Business

The UN Global Compact’s Guide to Corporate Sustainability is an excellent resource for understanding what it takes to run a sustainable business. It talks about operations, taking action, top-level commitment, corporate culture, and communications.

Non-Regulators and Their Role

by Jo Anne Schwendinger | Oct 26, 2022 | 2022, Archive, Blog, Compliance, Stakeholder Engagement

A substantial amount of work that is being done in the ESG arena is by non-regulators. These include customers, investors, lenders, proxy advisors, ESG raters, credit rating agencies, and insurance companies. Let’s take a look at a few.

Do people trust business?

by Jo Anne Schwendinger | Oct 26, 2022 | 2022, Archive, Blog, Strategy, Sustainable Business

Businesses need not choose between shareholder interests, on the one hand, or social and environmental interests on the other. It is not a competitive, zero-sum game. If a company prioritizes employees so it comes out ahead in the war for talent, and it values customers and designs products they trust, shareholders will win, too.

What is ESG?

by Jo Anne Schwendinger | Sep 30, 2022 | 2022, Archive, Blog, Strategy

ESG is a set of metrics that a company and others can use to assess how

E: environmental issues like carbon emissions, and the use and availability of clean water,
S: social issues like indentured and slave labor, and employee health and safety, and
G: governance issues like who has decision-making power within an organization

affect company performance, and in turn how its operations impact the environment and society. There is a dual utility to ESG metrics. They can be used both to look inward at a company’s performance, and outward at how the company impacts the world.

Sustainability and the Law

by Jo Anne Schwendinger | Sep 14, 2022 | 2022, Archive, Blog, Compliance, Sustainable Business, Sustainable Design

Sustainability law is an emerging area where there is an opportunity to shape a cohesive legal corpus. As this body of law emerges, the leading edge will be cut by legislatures and the courts, but there is likewise an opportunity for practicing lawyers, academics, and chief legal officers and their teams to shape the law.