In recent years, the concept of ESG has been widely practiced in China and has become an important criterion for measuring the sustainable and high-quality development of enterprises. At the same time, how to build an ESG rating system with Chinese characteristics that takes into account international consensus, and how to implement the ESG concept, has become a topic of common concern for regulators, companies, investors and other market players.ESG is to make the cake bigger, and it is the reward of long-termismZhu Dajian, Director of the Institute of Sustainable Development and Management of Tongji University and Deputy Director of the Academic Committee of Tongji University, delivered a keynote speech on "From ESG to Sustainable Business". At the beginning of his speech, Zhu Dajian first clarified the differences between ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) and CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility). In Zhu Dajian's view, the concept of CSR originated in the 50s of the last century, and for a long time, CSR has become the main mechanism for enterprises to do social charity, donations, and public welfare, but when implementing CSR, it will be found that it is "two skins" with the main business of the enterprise, and it is not integrated and interconnected.In this context, Nanfang *** held the "2023 Responsible China ESG Innovation and Development Forum", which is one of the series of blockbuster activities of Nandu 2023 Think Tank Product Release Week, and it is also the first time that Nandu Think Tank Week has entered Shanghai.
The forum selected relevant excellent cases, pioneers and institutions from the three aspects of green development, social responsibility and corporate governance and awarded honors, and invited a number of experts and scholars to conduct research on related topics. At the forum, Zhu Dajian, Director of the Institute of Sustainable Development and Management of Tongji University and Deputy Director of the Academic Committee of Tongji University, delivered a keynote speech on "From ESG to Sustainable Business", in which he gave feasible suggestions on how to practice ESGHu Yinghua, ESG Partner of KPMG China and an expert in the environmental impact assessment expert database of the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, shared how to make good use of ESG system construction to instigate and drive the high-quality development of enterprises, and pointed out that ESG plays an important role in risk aversion, enterprise operation and enterprise development.
Zhu Dajian, Director of the Institute of Sustainable Development and Management, Tongji University, and Deputy Director of the Academic Committee of Tongji University.
In Zhu Dajian's view, ESG is different from the concept of corporate social responsibility under the traditional business civilization, but a tetrahedral model composed of economic, social, environmental, governance and other dimensions, and enterprises need to start from these aspects to promote ESG development.
Zhu Dajian also pointed out that China's corporate social responsibility has been engaged in for more than ten years, but if ESG is still interpreted from the original CSR perspective, it will miss this outlet. "CSR is a public relations department set up by a large company, and a little profit is set up every year to do things that burn money, and there is no need to talk about commercial returns. But if we talk about ESG today and there is no commercial return, we will go off the wrong path. Many small and medium-sized enterprises say that there will be pressure when talking about corporate responsibility, and ESG is a matter of paying money, how can I survive?In fact, its interests are higher, and you can find new business opportunities by solving social problems, and the more business opportunities you solve, the more money you make, and it is long-termism to make good money. ”
Zhu Dajian also emphasized that ESG is to turn the opposing parts into the opposite parts, and it is not to do selective social welfare, but to solve social problems and environmental problems into new business opportunities. The purpose of ESG is not only to share the cake, but to make it bigger together with stakeholders. ESG is attractive to large corporations, SMEs, listed and unlisted companies.
Finally, on how to implement ESG, Zhu Dajian said that ESG is not a simple ethics and morality, but a new set of professional and standardized management tools. "ESG reports are not written, but made, enterprises should plan in advance, I will give an example of Moutai, Moutai did not do a good job in the analysis of the importance of the company's business, it has done a lot of social affairs, but it is precisely Moutai is making wine, water resources are its primary solution to the sustainable development problem, as a result, it did not have any decision-making arrangements for this important event, and then Moutai asked professional consulting to understand what is important in each stakeholder, and then it was done. ”
ESG reduces financing costs and helps companies win the talent war
Hu Yinghua, ESG Partner of KPMG China and an expert in the Environmental Impact Assessment Expert Database of the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, shared her views on how to make good use of ESG system construction to instigate and drive the high-quality development of enterprises. In her day-to-day consulting work, Hu Yinghua observes that for enterprises, there are multi-dimensional driving factors for the implementation of ESG.
Hu Yinghua, ESG Partner, KPMG China, and Expert of the Environmental Impact Assessment Expert Database of the Ministry of Ecology and Environment.
In terms of risk aversion, enterprises can use the construction of ESG system to avoid management compliance risks driven by policy and regulation, and can also use this to win the favor of ESG-friendly investorsIn terms of self-development, the construction of ESG system can help enterprises reduce financing costs through ESG and green financing, and can also help enterprises obtain ESG value chain customers, expand relevant markets, and build their brand and reputationIn terms of enterprise management and operation, ESG chain management helps to screen responsible businessmen, jointly maintain the true "green" market, and also allows enterprises to update their management structure and concepts and implement management changes through ESG strategy and planning, and can also attract and retain talents with organizational values, ensure that employees are treated fairly and have room for growth.
From the perspective of capital connection, Hu Yinghua found that at present, capital risk appetite has begun to incorporate ESG risk assessment into the overall risk consideration and risk assessment model, and ESG has also brought many market opportunities. "My clients have given me some feedback, and many times investors will ask or evaluate the company's ESG risks when doing research, especially in terms of energy transition and climate opportunities. On the other hand, the market changes in ESG and low-carbon dynamics have also unearthed many ESG market opportunities, including the market for urban infrastructure facilities brought by autonomous driving technology, which have become opportunities for ESG development, and have also opened up the ability and potential of market exploitation. ”
In addition, Hu Yinghua also observed that from the perspective of corporate brand and reputation building, ESG strategy, vision, and performance can help build an organization's brand and reputation, which can enhance the organization's social influence and build the company's image.
From the perspective of the company's own development, Hu Yinghua believes that enterprises can carry out management reform through the establishment of ESG system and the establishment of ESG management and strategy. At the same time, giving full play to the potential of ESG as a strategic tool for human resources has also become the key for enterprises to win the talent war. "ESG has led to changes across the organization, and some companies will set up a dedicated ESG management committee under the board of directors to coordinate the work of various departments in this area, and the overall values and management of the company will have profound changes. In addition, the ESG S section provides a suitable channel to listen to the voice of talents, ensuring that employees are treated fairly and have room to grow, which is conducive to increasing organizational resilience and retaining talent. Hu Yinghua said.
Producer: Nandu Political and Business Data News Department, Shanghai News Department.
Written by: Nandu reporter Lin Wenqi.