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Today we know ESG performance has become an imperative, but it's not just for compliance reasons, also for business performance too. Leaders have long understood that what we measure shapes what we do. It will drive new value, new growth, and eventually, and I hope very soon, it's going to permeate everything that we do in business and in government. Just as the digital revolution transformed how we live and work, so now will sustainability.

Stephanie: Laurel, at Accenture, we see sustainability as the new digital. Laurel: Stephanie, how are you seeing this type of urgency play out with clients across industries now? It was a virtuous circle, which is what is required in order to invest in businesses that are trying to achieve sustainability goals. We Engaged with managements and worked with them towards these goals, and then we would report back to the client. It was a very proactive process where we would vote our proxies, and we would select companies based on a thoughtful consideration of ESG criteria in addition to their attractiveness as investments. They were also concerned about human rights issues, the treatment of the workforce, and in addition, how companies were governed. The impetus was that the client was, even back then, two decades ago, very concerned about fossil fuels. Gita: Yeah, Laurel, I managed the first global ESG portfolio in this country way back. Building a purpose-driven model with a commitment to environmental, social, and governance goals can also lead to new products, new ways of working, and even new revenue streams. Creating sustainable enterprise requires not just support from leadership, but a commitment to setting and meeting outcomes in a transparent way across the entire enterprise. We understand the importance of inclusive conversations, and have chosen to highlight the work of women on the cutting edge of technological innovation, and business excellence. We're focusing on how organizations, researchers, and innovators are meeting our evolving global challenges. This episode is part of our Building the Future series. The show that helps business leaders make sense of new technologies coming out of the lab and into the marketplace.

Laurel Ruma: From MIT Technology Review, I'm Laurel Ruma, and this is Business Lab. Accenture and the World Economic Forum, 2021.Emerging solutions like cloud and platform providers offer tracking and insights throughout entire supply chains to help enterprises make better decisions. We understand the importance of inclusive conversations and have chosen to highlight the work of women on the cutting edge of technological innovation, and business excellence.Ĭhallenges remain for enterprises in targeting, measuring, and reporting sustainability performance, Jamison says, and those that lag behind can miss out on new sources of value and growth driven by sustainability.

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It’s a multi-episode series focusing on how organizations, researchers, and innovators are meeting our evolving global challenges. This episode is part of our “Building the future” podcast series. It will drive new value, new growth, and eventually, and I hope very soon, it's going to permeate everything that we do in business and in government,” says Stephanie Jamison, global resources industry practices chair at Accenture. “Just as the digital revolution transformed how we live and work, so now will sustainability. However, many enterprises are finding that meeting sustainability goals not only aligns with compliance but also offers opportunities to drive new value, growth, and revenue streams. Commitments toward sustainability have become a greater priority in recent years as enterprises look to comply with environmental, social, and governance standards.

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