With the rise of ESG, the opportunities brought about through the sustainable development agenda and the benefits of taking a proactive approach to climate change, we are seeing new products, services, innovations and start-ups. However, is it good enough just to provide ESG advice to others or have an eco-product that automatically brings you a level of ESG credentials? 

It's maybe not a bad place to start but it's certainly not a holistic and robust approach. For example, a business that sells solar panels may have inherit environmental kudos but if there are human rights abuses in the supply chain, or aggressive sales tactics to vulnerable customers, then it is neither a good ESG investment nor does it demonstrate a responsible business approach.   

This sentiment also applies to ESG advisors and consultants. If clients are going to trust in the advice they are being given, it makes sense that they want to see those advisors 'walking the talk'. With the legal sector increasingly shaping its ESG offer and practice areas, Impactvise conducted a global analysis of law firms in terms of their ESG maturity where six of the seven top performers were based in the UK.  This included Burges Salmon. 

This highlights the importance of ESG metrics and the development of reporting frameworks in getting a full view of ESG credentials and not taking things at face value.