The Impact of ESG on Project Selection

Rita is a project manager in Munich, Germany.

  Organizational Culture   Social Impact   Strategy   Sustainability  

As the anthropic impact on the environment and climate change becomes more evident, society is experiencing an evolution in the social contract. As such, companies are now asked to implement projects that will support not just their long-term growth, but also address stakeholders’ expectations with environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues.  

Beside financial considerations, stakeholders are now keen on corporate sustainability aspects such as:

• achieving carbon neutrality
• reducing the level of greenhouse gas emissions
• striving toward digitization
• supporting internal policies to promote equity and inclusion in the workforce

As these different aspects come into the equation, we should ask ourselves which characteristics a project should have to get approved and make it into the pipeline. Considering all of the constraints, a “good” project must be:

• Profitable: It must align with the strategic goals of the company and bring a positive return on Investment (ROI), or at least a competitive advantage.
• Sustainable: It must ensure, among other alternatives, the least environmental impact—or even better, contribute to the company’s environmental goals.
• Fair: It must conform to the highest standard between external regulations (laws, treaties, directives) and the internal guiding principles of the company (code of …

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