Beyond Money-making

ESG marks a shift from profit-centric to ethics-driven business, integrating environmental care, social responsibility, and governance accountability

- RAAVI BIRBAL

The latest buzzword is ESG. It stands for Environmental, Social, and Governance. ESG represents a paradigm shift in how businesses now define success. No longer is profitability the sole measure; rather, it's ethics. Companies are now expected to demonstrate responsibility towards the environment, society, and governance. Modern consumers, especially Millennials and Gen Z, prefer brands that align with their values, ethical standards, and issues they care about.

ESG, if read and executed carefully, can be a game changer for our daily lives. In simple words, it is a corporate's contribution and positioning on factors that influence our everyday lives. There are three pillars of ESG—Environmental: the environmental pillar measures a company's impact on the planet; Social: the social pillar focuses on how a company treats people within and outside the organisation, its community contributions, and various other societal issues; Governance: this addresses the structure and processes that ensure corporate accountability, fairness, and transparency. It's a framework used to evaluate how responsibly and sustainably an organisation operates.