Document summary
This report aims to give the interested practitioner an overview of the current research on ESG. In this enhanced meta-study we categorize more than 190 different sources. Within it, we find a significant correlation between diligent sustainability business practices and economic performance. The first part of the report explores this thesis from a strategic management perspective, with remarkable results: 88% of reviewed sources find that companies with robust sustainability practices demonstrate better operational performance, which ultimately translates into cashflows. The second part of the report builds on this, where 80% of the reviewed studies demonstrate that prudent sustainability practices have a positive influence on investment performance. This report ultimately demonstrates that responsibility and profitability are not incompatible, but in fact wholly complementary.
The report was first published in September 2014 and then updated in March 2015.