Do your words have meaning? Do they hold true value? Is there an implied truth that adds weight to them or are your words just for effect without any meaning for tomorrow? Greenwashing is becoming a major problem in the corporate world and is inhibiting investment in new technologies and companies. In society, we try to protect commitments that have been made to us with contracts, laws, agreements and enforcement.

Sustainability and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) reporting is also undergoing external assurance in order to nurture trust. Ninety-one percent of 1,400 companies across 22 jurisdictions report some level of sustainability information and 51% offer some level of assurance. That’s according to “The State of Play in Sustainability Assurance,” a recent report from the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) and the Association of International Certified Professional Accountants

Imagine a modern-day family, where parents were about to send their children to school. There would
be no question that most parents would try to send their children to the best school and encourage
them to speak their minds openly, no matter their gender. These parents would be highly insulted if it
was suggested that they would behave otherwise.
Despite this, the same cannot always be said for company culture.

Define the Why

Within asset management, the story of recent years has been the emergence of sustainability or ESG tainted products. Redecorating existing funds to create a ESG look-and-feel has been a new trend on the back of substantial flows into ESG products. Yet many investors and clients are very smart and they are developing the skills to be able to tell very easily if an investment strategy is genuinely authentic. Besides, regulators also have started paying attention, especially in Europe, to the issue of funds which use pretended or misinforming names.

What type of a society do we want to live in? Do we want a world where every human being is able to live in dignity or a world that continues to be ruled by rising imbalances?

It is British philosopher Alain de Botton who said: ‘’we become fully human only through education’’. We expect education to be accessible, free and compulsory everywhere in the world; but in reality, according to the United Nations, there are still 260 million children out of school!

The need for corporate purpose and the question of “why” companies do what they do is becoming ever more important. For a corporation articulating an inspiring purpose to all the stakeholders and especially to the employees is just a first step. Next comes the challenge of how to walk the talk?

Previously in our Blog, we have explored the need for corporate purpose and to ask the question “why” companies do what they do. We emphasized the significance of an inspiring purpose articulated in the form of a mission statement in ensuring durable, high quality relationships with stakeholders.

There are different ways an organization can attract and engage its various stakeholders. Having an inspiring purpose articulated in form of a mission statement may be one of the most effective ways. An even simpler concept is presented by Simon Sinek, the British-American author, who offers “WHY” as an influential notion in his impactful book “Start with why”.

“Trust is the essence of good governance and the foundation for sustainable development.” Trust is very fragile. It takes special attention to detail to build and even more to protect it. As Warren Buffet says “It takes years to build a reputation and seconds to ruin it.”