S-RM, a global intelligence and cyber security consultancy, has released ‘The Rise of Social Sustainability’ ESG Report, based on findings from a survey of 550 corporates and 200 investors across the UK, France, Germany, the Netherlands and the US.
The report found that:
- Sixty-six per cent of companies and 58 per cent of investors expect their ESG budgets to rise in the next five years, with ‘Social’ receiving a greater allocation.
- Over 80 per cent of European investors and corporates do not feel fully prepared for forthcoming ESG regulations.
- Seventy-four per cent of companies feel they lack full ESG maturity.
- Seventy-seven per cent of companies do not include ‘responsible supply chains’ within their ESG programmes.
It found that, assessed by any metric, whether effort and resources, KPIs or budget, Environment is dominant across all sectors and investors, coming out top for effort and resources. Social comes next, followed by Governance.
While Governance “consistently ranks at the bottom,” this is not necessarily reflective of prioritisation, but because governance has “always been there because everybody is always required to operate legally,” the report outlined.
Social issues are expected to receive growing traction over the next five years, it was shared, and while there is an “urgent need for action” on Social issues, overall, businesses are still starting from a low base.
The report also found that only 19 per cent of companies surveyed factor geopolitical risk into their sustainability programmes.
Meanwhile, just 10 per cent of the shipping and logistics companies reported to consider geopolitical risks as part of their ESG programmes.
For the full ‘The Rise of Social Sustainability’ report, head here.