The past few years were heady times in ESG, sustainability, climate and DEI. Companies eagerly built up programs, hired staff, spent boldly and made loud pronouncements of support. Today, it is different. Fear – due to tremendous uncertainty in global trade, international relations, rapid US political/policy changes and even overt political targeting – permeates almost every aspect of business at the moment. Talking about sustainability/DEI initiatives – even successes – is likely to trigger lawsuits, boycotts, regulatory action and even Presidential Executive Orders against specific organizations.
Executives across all sectors seem to have no havens or point of certainty. It’s tough out there. Just two examples from last week:
This from Responsible Investor:
Tiffany Reeves, a partner at Faegre Drinker and fiduciary counsel to [CalPERS], said it was important to understand ‘how much things have changed … The political paradigm has shifted, but also the law has shifted, and there are over 161 pending litigation matters in federal courts right now. What I think is important to understand is that the law is substantially in flux at this point in time and it remains unclear as of [today] what is and what is not illegal DE&I. It’s important to be mindful when you’re making a decision that we are in a period of tremendous uncertainty. This puts more weight on sustainability programs and professionals already under pressure to show their value in companies, especially in a way that doesn’t attract attention of the wrong kind.'”
And from Trellis:
- “Small and midsize businesses (SMBs) that feature sustainable, circular or ethical practices are especially vulnerable to tariff whiplash.
- In fact, rising costs and shifting pressures are forcing some to halt operations.
- Transparent, diversified supply chains have helped others adjust — but can’t fully shield them from uncertainty.”
How do you do show value and avoid “attention of the wrong kind”? Show where your work directly connects to your company’s business fundamentals and communicate in those terms.
I’m a broken record on this but the message isn’t being received as widely as we need, because sustainability professionals are stuck in a jargon rut and/or they don’t really know how to link their work to those business fundamentals in a meaningful way. Zach wrote last week about the gap between CSRD disclosures and business strategies. Even terminology about “integrating sustainability into the business” is too jargony. Just call it “business”, “cost management”, “risk management’, “margin improvement”, “revenue growth”, or “new product development”. Maybe those terms aren’t as sexy as sustainability jargon, but who really cares except for other sustainability professionals – or others who see those as trigger words for targeting?
Don’t know where to start? Try our Guidebooks Simplifying ESG/Sustainability Business Value, Communicating ESG Value and Practical Methodology for Sustainability ROI Using Company-Specific Business Fundamentals. These are easy to understand, practical tools to help you move from a sustainability point of reference to a business value perspective. And we have more on the way.
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