ESG: Be the change – there’s no PLANet B – with Nicola Weir, Deloitte

January 27, 2023

ESG: Be the change – there’s no PLANet B – with Nicola Weir, Deloitte

ESG is just about the physical world, right? Wrong. There is so much packed into this term that every business needs to consider what it means for them. Whether we’re talking about values, opportunities in the workplace or recruitment, ESG needs to be a central driver if we are serious about investing in our future. We all need to be part of the change now, talking less, doing more.

Who better to join me to explain the benefits and how to approach ESG than Nicola Weir, Internal Sustainability and Climate Leader, and ESG Lead, for Deloitte Asia Pacific.

Nicola explains the connection between ESG, employee engagement, mental wellbeing, performance and other key measures that companies are grappling with. She also explores the increasing reality that investors are looking for good ESG credentials, and the impact that is having on companies rethinking the needs of employees.

We discuss:

🌍 The increasing volume of employee voices connecting ESG and employee experience

🌍 How to go about interpreting the standards and practices associated with each of the 3 disciplines within ESG

🌍 How companies can join the dots between employee experience, business strategy and their ESG initiative

🌍 Where to start so that the ESG agenda feels less overwhelming for SMEs

🌍 How organisations communicate their ESG efforts so that they are meaningful to current and prospective employees (complimenting what Sophie and Alice of The Joyful discuss in their episode of the podcast about marketing)

🌍 Key actions business leaders should be implementing now to make a real difference to employee engagement

Shaping a responsible business that treats people well requires a shift in behaviour. Nicola is clear about the fact it’s a journey, and the need to take small steps so that the process avoids feeling scary. However small your business, there are conversations you can have and bite-sized changes that you can make to become more sustainable, purposeful and rewarding for your employees (and the planet).

Nicola poses a great question, and one that I will leave you with…

“What would our children do?”

More about Nicola

Nicola is Deloitte Asia Pacific’s Internal Climate and Sustainability leader and ESG Partner within Deloitte South Korea. Prior to this Nicola was head for Deloitte Europe’s internal sustainability strategy, WorldClimate. She has 20 years experience in business transformation, with specialism in ESG. She has worked in UK, Indonesia, Nepal, Tanzania, Mozambique and now Korea.

She is a mentor to young women and an advisor for start ups – in Nepal she helped establish a business accelerator- Nepal Communitere. In addition she was the founder of consultancy company Thagaconnect who connected experts with NGOs to provide ESG and training services. Nicola was also a Director for Myinloco Ltd community app.