SUSTAINABILITY IS EMBEDDED IN EVERYTHING WE DO AT ABB . IT IS THE DRIVING FORCE THAT GUIDES OUR ACTIONS EVERY DAY
Stefano Cinquina Global Business Line Manager Pulp & Paper , ABB
WHAT DID HEIDRICK & STRUGGLES ’ SUSTAINABILITY RESEARCH FIND ?
Heidrick & Struggles ’ recent report , ‘ The Role of the Board in the Sustainability Era 2023 ’, revealed a clear gap between intentions and prioritisation of the ESG agenda at boardroom level .
Researchers discovered that , despite greater societal expectations on businesses in terms of ESG , most opportunity to forge an appropriate forward by following three key principles .
“ Firstly , boards can further sharpen governance , including by reevaluating their makeup , ensuring deliberations take a long-term perspective and improving transparency on issues such as director selection and evaluation .
“ Second , the board can carve out and better safeguard time for addressing how sustainability will impact the business , digging into short , medium and long-term issues that have the ability to affect their business directly and indirectly in the coming years .
“ Finally , directors can personally model strong and consistent leadership behaviours when it comes to ESG , including by making tough , consequential decisions and bridging the divide between stakeholders on contentious issues .” boards do not feel financial pressure to act on sustainability issues . More than two-thirds of surveyed board directors said sustainability considerations had either “ no effect ” or a “ slight effect ” on financial performance .
Around 52 % revealed they were acting on sustainability because it was the ‘ right thing to do ’, with a similar number ( 51 %) citing legislative requirements .
Moreover , while a healthy majority ( 79 %) of board members stated their board had a very clear understanding of the strategic opportunities and risks that come with increased sustainability , just 29 % completely agreed they had sufficient knowledge to effectively challenge management on sustainability plans and ambitions and oversee their execution .
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