A Amcham Brazil, in partnership with humanized, launched the study “ESG Brazil Panorama 2023”. The research had the participation of 574 executives, mostly from large and medium-sized companies (70%), which together are responsible for almost half a million direct jobs and a annual revenue of R$762 billion.
When answering who should lead the agenda ESG, the majority of participants indicated the responsibility of CEOs, presidents and vice-presidents of companies (82%) and government (69%). Banks and investment funds (51%), NGOs and associations (49%), directors (47%) and advisors (43%) were also mentioned.
“Businesspeople recognize that the ESG agenda is collective, involving actors at various layers of the public and private spheres. But they also understand, unequivocally, that the leadership of this agenda must be exercised by the C-level of companies and the government”, said Abrão Neto, CEO of Amcham.
“This conclusion highlights the importance of high-level engagement to accelerate the adoption of ESG practices and investments in Brazil”, he highlighted.
The research also pointed out as critical success factors in implementing ESG practices the training of organizations' leaders and employees (48%), awareness actions (47%), the development of a strong sustainability culture (43%) and forecasting of budget dedicated to investments in ESG initiatives (40%).
Implementation of the ESG agenda
The survey revealed that 47% of responding companies are market references or are adopting ESG practices. In addition, 31% of participants are planning to implement these measures.
“According to the study, the adoption curve of ESG practices is about to reach the so-called inflection point, which occurs when more than 50% of companies are effectively included in the ESG agenda”, reported Neto.
“The perspective is one of clear evolution towards a market that is increasingly responsible from an environmental, social and governance point of view”, commented the executive.
Amcham also revealed that 62% are familiar with ESG shares and strategies. While 42% indicate they have reasonable experience and/or knowledge on this topic, another 20% already consider themselves to have extensive experience and/or knowledge. On the other hand, 32% have doubts about some aspects related to the topic.
In this context, the main challenges are related to the difficulty of measuring and monitoring ESG indicators (38%), lack of a strong sustainability culture (32%), lack of financial resources for investments (27%) and lack of internal knowledge (27 %).
Main motivators
The main motivators cited by companies for incorporating ESG practices are strengthening market reputation (61%), positive impact on socio-environmental issues (57%) and reducing environmental, social and governance risks (40%).
In Amcham's assessment, the ongoing process of maturity and greater awareness of the benefits inherent to ESG practices will gradually lead to an increase in companies' perception of the positive impacts of this behavior on leading socio-environmental issues.
ongoing actions
Among the main environmental impact actions underway by companies are the recycling and reuse of materials (46%), the optimization of the use of natural resources (45%) and investment in innovation with a view to sustainable products and services.
On the other hand, the report indicated that only 25% of them are taking actions to reduce impacts on biodiversity and 14% to offset or reduce GHG emissions.
In the social dimension, more than half of companies seek to train their employees (62%), develop a culture of diversity and inclusion (58%) and adopt fair remuneration and benefits policies (51%).
In the governance sphere, the adoption of a code of ethics and anti-corruption policy (54%), transparency and governance policies (47%), as well as committees or teams focused on ESG (30%) stand out. However, only 20% prioritize investments based on ESG criteria and only 16% use ESG certifications or rating assessments.
Conclusions
The study showed that reaching the maturity of the ESG agenda in Brazil is a long-term process, with victories already achieved, but with clear obstacles to be overcome by public and private leaders.
“It is the role of companies to invest in corporate education and establish a strong culture of environmental and social responsibility. It is the government's responsibility to create public policies to encourage the adoption of these ESG practices. The combination of both efforts enhances the results in favor of the entire society”, concluded the CEO of Amcham.
About the research
The “Panorama ESG Brasil 2023” survey was applied between March 24th and April 6th. The majority of the 574 participants hold leadership positions, such as CEOs, VPs, partners, advisors or directors (52%), working in the areas of sustainability, people management and istration.
Most of the companies represented in the study are at an advanced stage of validating their business model, whether in maturity or reinvention of the model.
