A Short Introduction to ESG
Professorship of Finance and Corporate Governance
(Prof. Dr. Peter Limbach and Niklas Eberstadt)
University of Bielefeld
Contribution of the Professorship of Finance & Corporate Governance
Teaching Research
Lectures and seminars covering Empirical research with a focus
ESG topics on “S” and “G” topics
Bachelor and Master theses on Publications in internationally
ESG topics recognized journals
ESG workshops for students Insights and recommendations
and practitioners for practitioners and legislators
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E… S… what?
The term “ESG” stands for Environmental, Social, and Governance, i.e., the non-financial,
sustainability-related areas of corporate decision-making and responsibility
E S G
• “E” refers to environmental • “S“ refers to social issues, • “G“ refers to corporate
issues – such as the use of such as occupational health governance and leadership,
natural resources or and safety, product safety, including such topics as
greenhouse gas emissions – and social commitment executive compensation and
that companies face due to the rights and representation
their business activities of shareholders and other
stakeholders
Source: MSCI (2018). 3
ESG on the Rise
ESG criteria have become enormously important to firms, investors and policymakers, particularly
to ensure a socially responsible restructuring of the economy
Paris Climate Agreement: 190 countries have committed to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees
This agreement means a short-term transformation of the economy, with firms facing increasing pressure
to transform (e.g., Emissions Trading System, Fridays for Future, Green New Deal)
In 2019, the Business Roundtable, a group of 181 CEOs of America’s largest corporations, signed
a statement to abandon shareholder primacy
They agreed on a new definition of corporate purpose under which firms serve not only their shareholders,
but also deliver value to other stakeholders like customers, employees, and communities
Germany’s “Lieferkettengesetz” holds companies liable for social grievance along the supply chain
High governance standards via codes (e.g., German Corporate Governance Code) and laws
Source: MSCI (2018); European Union (2021b). 4
Environmental (“E”)
Many investors, particularly so-called impact investors, focus on the environmental factor, making it
the most popular sustainability criterion – sustainable investments tend to be driven by intrinsic
motivations, not just pure risk and return considerations
Common Environmental Risk Factors
• Carbon intensity
• Circular economy
• Climate change strategy
• Energy and water efficiency
• Environmental impact of products
• Environmental management system
• Natural resource conservation
Source: MSCI (2018). 5
Social (“S”)
The social pillar of the ESG framework has lagged behind due to challenges around the definition
and scope of this arguably “soft” factor – while being harder to quantify, social factors and the
social value they create can be pivotal to firm performance
Common Social Risk Factors
• Customer and product responsibility
• Equal opportunities and diversity
• Freedom of association
• Health and safety
• Human rights
• Social impact of products and services
• Supply chain management
Source: S&P Global (2020). 6
Governance (“G”)
Corporate governance and leadership have been important to investors at least since the early
2000s when many countries introduced governance codes and regulations in response to severe
corporate scandals (such as Enron, Parmalat, and Tyco)
Common Governance Risk Factors
• Board and management team composition
• Corruption and bribery
• Disclosure and transparency
• Executive compensation and ownership
• Risk and crisis management
• Shareholder and stakeholder representation
• Tax avoidance and strategy
Source: MSCI (2018). 7
Prominent ESG Incidents
E S G
Source: Financial Times (2015); Science and Technology (2021); CNN (2013). 8
Disregarding ESG Standards: The Case of “Dieselgate”
“Dieselgate”, Volkswagen’s 2015 emissions scandal, is an example of how the disregard of ESG
standards may translate into financial, legal, and reputational risks for companies
E S G
• VW cheated on the carbon • VW generated health risks • Questionable corporate
emissions of its diesel due to particulate pollution, culture and governance
engines leading to violating its customer and standards facilitated
environmental damages product responsibility fraudulent behavior
When the market learned about “Dieselgate”, VW’s market capitalization declined by €15.8 billion
The scandal spilled over to other German car manufacturers and hit customers around the globe
Source: Financial Times (2015). 9
ESG Materiality
ESG risks and opportunities differ across industries, and even across firms within an industry
For example, carbon emission risk is only of relatively minor importance for the health care industry, while
it has a major impact on the ESG ratings of companies operating in the energy sector
ESG materiality refers to the effectiveness and financial significance of specific aspects that define
the ESG performance of a company
How a firm’s different ESG risks and opportunities should be weighted to derive ESG or ESG pillar
ratings depends on a company’s industry, environment, and characteristics
Assessment of
Calculation of Assessment of
the impact of
Industry analysis industry specific company specific
ESG risks and
weights per pillar ESG score
opportunities
Source: MSCI (2020). 10
Institutional Investors and ESG
In 2020, investors in mutual funds and ETFs invested ca. $300 billion in sustainable assets
Institutional Investors play a significant role in enforcing ESG standards at the company level
In an open letter, Black Rock CEO Larry Fink called for a shift away from the shareholder value
approach toward a more holistic stakeholder approach, identifying global warming and its social
consequences as a core responsibility of the economy
The UN-backed Principles for Responsible Investments (PRI) were signed by over 1,500 investors
representing $60 trillion in assets under management
Source: Black Rock (2021); McKinsey (2016). 11
Common ESG Investment Approaches
ESG Exclusionary
integration investing
Investing with a Avoiding securities
systematic and on the basis of an
explicit inclusion of organization’s or
ESG risks and individual´s moral
opportunities in values and
investment believes (negative
analysis screening)
Preferring
Investing with the
companies with
intention to create
better or
measurable
improving ESG
positive social or
profiles relative to
environmental
sector peers
benefits alongside
(best-in-class
financial returns
selection)
Impact Inclusionary
investing investing
Source: MSCI (2018). 12
Greenwashing
No sharp definitions of what makes corporate actions and investments sustainable
Greenwashing describes the process by which a company markets itself, its products or policies as
more sustainable than they really are
It is one of the major concerns for investors that try to integrate ESG factors into their investment
decisions
Lack of transparency and mandatory reporting standards makes the comparison for investors even
more difficult
With the proposal for Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) the EU attempts to harmonize
non-financial reporting across listed companies to address this issue
Source: European Union (2021a); Morningstar (2021). 13
References
• Black Rock (2021): Larry Fink´s 2021 letter to CEOs, Larry Fink CEO Letter | BlackRock.
• CNN (2013): Bangladesh factory collapse: Who really pays for our cheap clothes, Bangladesh collapse: What cost
cheap clothes? – CNN.
• European Union (2021a): Corporate sustainability reporting, Corporate sustainability reporting | European Commission
([Link]).
• European Union (2021b): Paris Agreement, Paris Agreement | Climate Action ([Link]).
• Financial Times (2015): Boardroom politics at heart of VW scandal, [Link]
a57f-21b88f7d973f.
• McKinsey (2016): What institutional investors should do next on ESG, Sustaining sustainability: What institutional
investors should do next on ESG | McKinsey.
• Morningstar (2021): How to find the Right ESG Fund, How to Find the Right ESG Fund | Morningstar.
• MSCI Inc. (2018): Introducing ESG Investing – MSCI, bcac11cb-872b-fe75-34b3-2eaca4526237 ([Link]).
• MSCI Inc. (2020): ESG Industry Materiality Map, Materiality Map – MSCI.
• Science and Technology (2021): Where Did the Oil from the Deepwater Horizon Spill Go? Where Did the Oil from the
Deepwater Horizon Spill Go? | JSTOR Daily.
• S&P Global (2020): What is the “S” in ESG?, What is the “S” in ESG? | S&P Global ([Link]).
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