June Issue
Welcome to my newsletter. Consider this a collection of insights and ideas from myself and the team at CEO.works.
Today, we have a treasure trove of insights awaiting your exploration. We're diving headfirst into Hein J.M. Knaapen 's profound perspective on how CHROs can navigate the critical landscape of ESG matters. From our recent webinar, enjoy a deep-dive into the Talent to Value? methodology, courtesy of the formidable Heidi Sichien , Chief People Officer at Philips. Finally, we take a detour to the greens, where we cheer on our dear friend Sam Shriver 's fantastic Random Act of Kindness Tour. Enjoy the read!
Article?
In this thought-provoking piece, Hein J.M. Knaapen captures a pressing issue faced by senior HR leaders in Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) matters. Rather than a clarion call for indiscriminate societal change, Hein encourages CHROs to scrutinize and unbundle ESG aspects, focusing on those that present the most value for their organizations.
Here's the excerpt:
You want to create a better world for future generations—and you want to create enterprise value. Can you really do both?
Environmental, social, and governance matters are all over the news all the time. Everyone is now looking to you, as the senior HR officer of the company, to lead the kind of change that will address many of the related "people" issues. But before the lure of doing good traps you in a grandiose "change the world" conversation, consider this. Every burden society puts on your company or your role should be scrutinized thoroughly before you agree to take it on.As I've said before, only three things in the CHRO role cannot be challenged: the laws and regulations you must rigorously abide by, the human imperative to respect the dignity of your employees, and the responsibility to drive company performance.
That said, ESG presents leaders with a hodgepodge of issues. You don't have to treat it as such. Not all aspects of E, S, and G need to be priorities for all companies. Few organizations will want to, or even can, lead in all areas. Tradeoffs between the three dimensions can be hard to make. Best to unbundle ESG—carefully.
UNBUNDLING ESG
A special report of The Economist last year concluded that ESG should be boiled down to one thing: carbon emissions.* I beg to differ. I believe CHROs, together with their CEOs and CFOs, should boil ESG down to one or two aspects that will create the most value for their company.
If you can't explain to yourselves how ESG can create value, then you may be able to explain how it potentially destroys enterprise value. Value destruction happens when customers and consumers start avoiding you because you aren't seen to be making a contribution to a larger challenge we all share, such as environmental destruction.
If you can't do either (that is, if you see environmental, social, and governance factors as being entirely neutral in terms of their impact on value), then you can stop thinking about them. Not because you don't want to talk about equality and sustainability, net-zero, and decarbonization but because you've determined ESG will not impact company performance positively or negatively.
As the head of CEO Works Europe, for example, if I made a grand statement about an ESG policy, I'd be talking nonsense. We are a four-person operation: there are practically no carbon emissions to our business; we generously treat people with utter decency; and, among our small and diverse team, governance issues that plague large corporates, such as fairness and transparency, have no relevance. On the other hand, when I, as the CHRO of ING Bank, revised the company's leadership development to support the delivery of its strategy, 55,000 employees benefitted, as did our brand cachet in the talent marketplace.
If the G3 of your company (the CEO, CFO, and yourself) agree an aspect of ESG will be essential to either creating new value or avoiding value destruction, then make it intrinsic to your value agenda.
You can read the full article here .
领英推荐
Webinar Recap
In our recent webinar, we were privileged to present a unique view into our Talent to Value? methodology, illuminated through the lens of a client's experience. The session featured an enlightening discussion with Heidi Sichien, Chief People Officer at Philips.
Heidi has a solid background in HR, a good understanding of the international business environment, and a commitment to utilizing the People Agenda for value creation. Notably, she was involved in an impactful Talent to Value? project at Philips in collaboration with CEO.works. This experience enriched her understanding and skill in the framework.
This recording offers a compelling opportunity for business leaders, HR practitioners, and those keen on fostering a high-performance workforce. For those who missed the live conversation, you can find the recording on our website .
RAoK x Diamond Sports Foundation
With deep gratitude and sincere excitement, I'm pleased to share that The Diamond Sports Foundation will again be on the receiving end of my dear friend Sam Shriver's generous spirit this year.
Sam is the mind behind The Random Act of Kindness Tour (RAoKT), an annual fundraising golf tournament. Participants, many of whom are graduates from the USCGA, rally to raise funds for a selected charity. This fantastic initiative rotates its charitable beneficiary each year, ensuring all proceeds go directly to a worthy cause.
Many of you know this story: Sam and I first crossed paths as cadets at the United States Coast Guard Academy and continued our shared journey on the Coast Guard Leadership School staff. Together, we worked at The Center for Leadership Studies under Dr. Paul Hersey in the early '80s. Though our professional paths took us in different directions for a while, they intersected again through our mutual friend, Marshall Goldsmith.
In an exciting twist this year, I will participate in the RAoKT tournament. If you are in a position to cheer me on and sponsor a player in this year's tournament, please click on this?Sponsor a Player ?link, or use the QR code, and follow the prompts (my name and Sam's name are the first two options, but I am confident any player listed would welcome your support!).
Thank you in advance for your active consideration on behalf of all involved with this endeavor!
I hope you are enjoying my newsletter. Feel free to leave me your feedback in the comments section below.
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