Organisations are increasingly being judged based on non-financial performance; environment, social and governance (ESG) factors are of increasing importance. Focusing on sustainability is key to building resilient organisations.

This report is the first in a series of briefs exploring sustainability, business and the role of finance professionals. This report is an introduction to the area of sustainability, explaining key concepts such as ESG and presenting a call to action to finance professionals to take the lead in integrating sustainability into decision making.

The report focuses on:

• Why - sustainability is a mainstream issue
• What – the sustainability space; environmental, social, and governance
• Who – the call to action for finance professionals
• How – the four lenses of governance, strategy, risk management, and metrics and targets

Finance professionals need to be taking a leading role. We can provide financial and non-financial reporting, explain risks and set strategy. The upcoming reports will explore these themes in greater detail.