Not so long ago, Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) was not the priority for businesses that it is today. For many, it was an internal box ticking compliance exercise. It has now become a business-critical item high on boardroom agendas across the world and increasingly seen as an essential factor in investment decision making.

With COP26 fresh in the memory, the E element of ESG has gained the lion’s share of headlines. But businesses are now also striving for a better understanding of the social impact of their products and services, as well as to institute clear governance policies around responsible corporate behaviour. The broad coverage of ESG is reshaping the way businesses operate and driving positive change in all areas of our lives. Businesses can no longer afford merely to pay lip service to their ESG motives and greenwash their activities – for fear of reputational risk, regulatory scrutiny or profit loss.

As the volume increases on ESG so does the difficulty in discerning deliverable actions from honourable intentions; fact from fiction. Who are the pioneering businesses leading the charge on ESG and what does progress look like at a practical level? Where are the incremental changes being seen and what lessons can we take from them?

In this, the first of a series of reports from Shoosmiths on ESG, we look across the three distinct components of ESG to get under the skin of what ESG means and seek to answer the question: how are shifting mindsets around ESG tangibly influencing business and market change?

I hope you enjoy it.

Kirsten Hewson, Head of Real Estate