Preparing for an Effective ESG Ratings Season: 5 Tips to Get Ready

As the corporate reporting season is in full swing, ESG ratings such as those that determine the constituents of the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI) and CDP A-list are opening their assessments soon. If your company has decided to participate in S&P Global’s Corporate Sustainability Assessment (CSA), this article proposes five steps to use the remaining months wisely and get ready for the CSA to open in early April.

ESG Acceleration Webinar: Activating Your CSA 2022 Approach

During this webinar, we deep-dived into setting up for successful participation in S&P Global’s Corporate Sustainability Assessment in 2022. Keynote speaker Edoardo Gai, Managing Director, Head ESG Benchmarking at S&P Global Sustainable1, gave insights into the key trends driving the ESG agenda, and the methodology changes for this year's CSA.

Register Now for the New ESG Acceleration Webinar Series

Join us for 2022's first instalment of Finch & Beak's ESG Acceleration Webinar series, aimed at speeding up sustainability performance and activating your ESG approach. On 1 and 9 March we'll focus on Climate and ESG and with practical take-aways and real-life cases. Join us as we dive deeper into how to get ready for the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI) questionnaire and into preparing for climate transition.

DJSI: Increasing Standards, More Transparency

Reflecting emerging issues and new frameworks, the 2021 Corporate Sustainability Assessment (CSA) raised the bar on topics including diversity, equity & inclusion, climate scenario analysis, and biodiversity. Last December, S&P Global conducted a webcast on the Corporate Sustainability Assessment (CSA) 2021 results and methodology. Download our free summary of webcast's highlights in the attachment of the article.

ESG Ratings: Index, Impact or Both?

Just before the results of the 2021 Dow Jones Sustainability Indices (DJSI), were announced, Finch & Beak conducted an ESG survey among DJSI-eligible companies. In the attached report, you can find the main survey results. The overall conclusion from 143 respondents is that for most of the companies, the undesirable trade-off between index and impact occurs frequently due to mounting workloads to generate ESG data and the absence of standards. The report suggests solutions to avoid the 'reporting trap' by scoping sustainability performance as a supply chain challenge, avoiding over-instrumentalism by engaging closely with stakeholders, and selecting and prioritizing the right ESG benchmarks.

ESG Learning in Action: 2021 Dow Jones Sustainability Index Results

On Friday the 12th of November, S&P Dow Jones Indices announced the results of the annual Dow Jones Sustainability Indices (DJSI) review. Alphabet, Medtronic, bioMérieux, Warehouses De Pauw and Sika are new members in 2021’s DJSI Indices, while Nestlé, Dow and Danone have lost their spots in the World Index. As ESG transparency is increasing, activation of corporate sustainability programs is an essential factor for success.

ESG Acceleration Webinar: Activating Your ESG Analysis

Following the publication of the Dow Jones Sustainability Index results for 2021, this upcoming webinar is focused how to leverage the learnings from ESG ratings, and build business value by using them as a tool for engagement and continuous improvement. Together with guest speaker Sam Khola, Director Corporate Responsibility & Sustainability at Liberty Global, we will take a fresh look at how to fine-tune ESG programs and smoothen their implementation.

Job Alert: Business Consultant Sustainability

Finch & Beak is a leading European consulting firm in the field of ESG, sustainability strategy and creating positive impact. Over the past 24 years, we have worked with more than 150 corporate clients across Europe, trained over 5000 managers, and worked with top-level business schools from around the world. To help our fast-growing client portfolio accelerate its sustainability performance, we are expanding our team and are looking for a Business Consultant.

Towards a Lean DJSI 2022 Process: Webinar Learnings

With S&P Global’s 2021 Corporate Sustainability Assessment (CSA) closing date approaching and the process towards it still fresh in our minds, Finch & Beak organized a webinar to assemble lessons and improvement tips for streamlining the 2022 CSA process. Guest speakers from three companies at different stages in their DJSI journey joined us to share their approach, successes and challenges, and their learnings on how to become more effective in ESG ratings.

Update: S&P Global Extends its Invitation List for the CSA

S&P Global's Corporate Sustainability Assessment (CSA), the basis for selecting companies into the Dow Jones Sustainability Index, is now accessible for a larger group of companies. Last month, S&P Global announced to even further extend the group of companies to over 10,000,  inviting companies that are of interest to the broader investment community. Finch & Beak is launching a special offer for companies to help them make the most of their (first) active participation in the assessment.