How do ESG principles support business growth?

There are many ways to look at ESG in your business. It’s a great lens to use when managing risks, but there are other benefits too. A solid understanding and application of ESG principles can drive future sales growth. It can also be a great way of identifying efficiencies and helping to manage costs within your business.

Maintain and drive sales growth

Regulatory change is afoot regarding sustainability. Being clear on what those regulations are, how they impact your business, and how you will manage that is very important. This is especially true if you are a smaller business that is, or wants to be, a service provider to larger businesses. Your larger customers will soon be asking you questions about your operations, your policies and processes as part of their due diligence. Having a clear picture on what ESG means for you and your business will help you tackle these questions and sustain effective relationships – maintaining and driving sales growth.

Access funding, subsidies and grants

Integrating ESG thinking and planning into your longer-term business growth strategies is a good way to manage the rapidly evolving landscape. Having a clear, documented ESG plan that sets out your priorities today and where you’re headed will help you take advantage of funding opportunities, subsidies and grants that may be available within your local jurisdictions. Having a sound ESG plan is not only an important thing to do for long term resilient and sustainable growth, it can also give you access to funding on better terms. It may also give you the ability to apply for grants that you wouldn’t otherwise be able to access.

Add value to your company

When it comes to business valuation and creating long term sustainable growth, particularly for any business leaders thinking about a future exit, having ESG plans and policies that you can clearly and authentically demonstrate are truly embedded within your business is a critical component to enhancing the value of your company. Indeed, there have been some recent polls from leading global consultants demonstrating the number of transactions around business sales now no longer proceeding due to a particular ESG element not being in place or not being as effective as it could be.

Attract and retain talent

Your approach to ESG, what it means in the broadest sense for your business, your culture and values is a critical part of both attracting and retaining talent within your business. This is true of all ages and across all business sectors. If you’re not thinking about these issues, you can guarantee that your competitors are.

Having a clear focus and approach when it comes to implementing ESG across your business is important as you plan your strategy in 2024 and beyond.

Kickstart your ESG journey by downloading these ten key questions to understand where your business is now and how to plan for success. 

If you would like to watch a recording of our recent ESG webinar with case studies from other SMEs and further tips for success in 2024 please get in touch and we’ll share the link.