How Is ESG Being Handled in the Boardroom?

• Position: Director Data

A recent report by Diligent and Spencer Stuart, titled Sustainability in the Spotlight: Board ESG Oversight and Strategy, featured nearly 600 corporate directors answering questions that focused on how boards are structuring ESG oversight, the COVID19 pandemic's effect on ESG, sustainability's impact on strategy and executive compensation, and more.

Among the key findings emerging from the report are:

* 43% of respondents stated that primary oversight of ESG is a responsibility of the full board, while 30% said the initiative belongs to the nominating committee and 15% gave the responsibility to a designated ESG/sustainability committee.

* While 15% of boards discussed ESG at every meeting pre-pandemic, the number has risen to 34% in the wake of COVID-19. Meanwhile, only 4% of respondents say their boards "rarely or never" discuss sustainability in board meetings. Pre-COVID, that number sat at 20%.

* On the topic of board incorporation of ESG goals and metrics, 71% of respondents said those factors are being considered in the overall company strategy and 52% said they are being incorporated into integrated risk management. ESG...