ESG becomes increasingly important and many companies wonder how and where to start. So what does it take to start with ESG? We’ve broken down the initial legwork of ESG into five simple steps.
- 🕵🏻♀️ Define an ESG Taskforce
- 💡 Understand the Status Quo
- 🎯 Set Improvement Goals
- 🔎 Tracking of Goals
As ESG is linked many business processes and functions, it is essential to form a dedicated, cross-functional “ESG Taskforce” which drives the topic forward. We recommend that at least one founder is part of the team to ensure management buy-in. Regular meetings will help to hold individuals accountable and ensure progress in the long term.
Firstly, it is essential to understand the status quo. Hence, identify what measures are currently already in place. This will enable you to get a good overview of the current situation. For some guidance on potential questions, you can find the ESG questionnaire we use during our DD below
For help on (3) and (4), please also talk to your investor.
Based on the Status Quo analysis, try to find areas of improvement. We recommend you to set 2-3 goals you want to achieve within a year and 1-2 goals that you want to achieve within a 5-year timeframe (see here for some
Template for goal setting:
To see the progress you are making, we highly recommend you to include your ESG goals into your company-wide OKRs. This will help you to get an overview on where you stand and also holds people accountable.