What Success Looks Like: How to Know When You’re Getting ESG Right
Lately, we’ve been talking a lot about strategy. How to develop your business’s Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) strategy, and how to integrate it across the organization.
But how do you know your strategy is actually working?
Here are 6 signs that will show you your ESG strategy is beginning to take effect:
Your key stakeholders are more engaged
When you first begin to develop and implement an ESG strategy, it’s likely you’ll meet with some resistance or uncertainty from parts of the business. Stakeholders may feel hesitant about additional effort being asked of them, or remain unconvinced of the benefits.
When your strategy begins to take effect, you will see this resistance begin to melt away. Key stakeholders will show their support by talking positively to their teams about ESG, bringing new ideas forward and showing up with optimism rather than scepticism. External stakeholders will notice your efforts and look for ways to get involved.
You and your employees make more decisions through the lens of social, environmental and economic improvements
In many cases, strategies fail because they never make it from the top echelons of an organization to those on the frontline. In fact, only about 30% of employees globally can articulate what their organization’s strategy is, let alone describe their role in delivering it.
So, when you see staff across the organization begin to make ESG-informed decisions, or implementing ESG-related changes at the team level, you can be certain that your sustainability strategy is successfully taking root in your culture. This is an exciting development that’s worth celebrating!
You have a “more important” story to tell
What’s the story you tell about your business today?
It’s important and valuable to talk about your organization’s achievements, your history, your culture, to build an engaged internal team and a strong public reputation. But when you can share stories about your ESG strategy, your communications take on a new depth and richness. Being able to share that you’re not just a one-dimensional business, but an ethical organization that employees can take pride in and others can aspire to, is a wonderful moment.
Look for signs of increased engagement with your internal and external communications: more likes, shares and comments, positive qualitative feedback, more clicks on articles and more social media followers.
There is more innovation or creative thinking to your business processes using an ESG lens
It’s easy for organizations to get stuck in the same thinking patterns. Like a well-worn goat track, we tend to default to the path more travelled, and do things because “that’s how it’s always been done.”
When your ESG strategy is working, you will see employees at all levels bringing forward innovative ideas and using more creative problem solving strategies. They will approach old problems in new ways, adopting a sustainability lens to think about how things can be done differently.
Greater employee productivity
Employees who work for ethical businesses are more engaged, and are more likely to stay with their employers, because they respect their company and feel that their values are aligned. This increased engagement with the business translates to greater productivity. Employees are enthusiastic about taking on tasks, and have the internal energy and resilience to deliver beyond what’s expected, because they care about the outcome.
Look for improved employee engagement scores, lower turnover, staff offering up new or innovative ideas and team members volunteering to participate in projects.
Your peers are asking you about it
It’s true, what your mother told you. Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery!
When industry peers take note of what you’re doing, and want to learn more, you have become a standard-bearer for sustainability. That doesn’t mean you’re perfect (who is?) and it may not mean that your ESG journey is complete. In fact, the best sustainability leaders consider ESG implementation to be a cycle, not a destination. But recognition and questions from peers show that the hard work you have put in has permeated beyond the borders of your organization, and that those around you consider what you have done to be worthwhile.
Take pride in sharing your knowledge! It’s a great way to build your brand’s and your personal reputation, while paying forward the benefits of sustainability to businesses, the planet and your community.
