Harvard Law School Forum On Corporate Governance

News Detail

Year:

2022

Country:

Global

Source:

corpgov law harvard eu

Kurt B. Harrison is a senior member of Russell Reynolds Associates’ Financial Services sector and co-head of the global Sustainability practice; Emily Meneer leads Russell Reynolds Associates’ Sustainability practice Knowledge team; and Beijing Zhu is a member of Russell Reynolds Associates’ Financial Services sector Knowledge team. This post is based on their Russell Reynolds memorandum.

Related research from the Program on Corporate Governance includes The Illusory Promise of Stakeholder Governance and Will Corporations Deliver Value to All Stakeholders?, both by Lucian A. Bebchuk and Roberto Tallarita (discussed on the Forum here); For Whom Corporate Leaders Bargain by Lucian A. Bebchuk, Kobi Kastiel, and Roberto Tallarita (discussed on the Forum here); and Restoration: The Role Stakeholder Governance Must Play in Recreating a Fair and Sustainable American Economy—A Reply to Professor Rock by Leo E. Strine, Jr. (discussed on the Forum here).

As anyone involved with ESG will attest, the current level of demand for ESG leadership talent is unsurpassed and unrelenting.

Even firms with long-standing track records of successfully integrating ESG principles into their organizations are finding it more difficult than ever to stay ahead of dynamic and constantly evolving ESG expectations. Companies that have previously resisted establishing a formalized ESG policy and framework are finally bowing to pressure from their investors, consumers, employees, boards and regulators, and now find themselves scrambling to catch up. As ESG has gone from being a functional requirement to a commercial imperative, best-in-class organizations are embracing ESG in part because they firmly believe in the financial benefits of incorporating sustainability into their corporate and investment strategies.

All of these factors have led to an avalanche of demand for ESG leadership talent, straining what was already a very thin talent pool. It is clear that next-generation ESG leaders will look quite different from earlier archetypes, as the scope of the role grows and requires a far more senior and agile executive to be considered as a credible “ESG 2.0” leader.

 

To better understand this shift and the specific competencies and experience that firms are seeking, Russell Reynolds Associates analyzed the backgrounds of 46 senior ESG leaders from large, global organizations appointed over the past 18 months. Our data reveal that these leaders are predominantly female, overwhelmingly hired from outside of the company versus being promoted into the role, and bring cross-functional business expertise to the position.

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