Month: April 2023

Originally published on TriplePundit

Research has more than made the case for linking environmental, social and governance 
(ESG) strategies to corporate profitability. What’s good for people and the planet does, indeed, benefit a company’s bottom line. The trickier part is determining what programs will yield the best results for the investment.

Some ESG pathways are easier to attain and measure direct results, such as cost reductions. But top-line market growth demands a greater understanding of customer wishes and perceptions of a company’s ESG efforts. Those expectations and priorities will differ by industry sector, as well as by geographies, cultures, and demographics like age and gender.

While studies and reports can point companies in the right direction with top-level overviews of trends and industry insights, real-time survey and data collection can dig deeper into what consumers prize in ESG efforts.

Measuring consumer ESG priorities across industries, brands and more

Glow, a research-technology business with offices in North America, Europe and Asia-Pacific, first started tracking what consumers think about ESG issues in relation to purchasing decisions over two years ago. It began with a field of approximately 40 issues that, through multiple research studies across three markets (U.S., U.K. and Australia), were then synthesized into 13 ESG drivers of consumer priorities and perceptions.

The process yielded a diagnostic tool called the Social Responsibility Score (SRS) that not only provides a number to tell a company how it is perceived in its ESG efforts, but also where it stands in its industry and against its competitors and why consumers score it that way.

For example, among food and grocery (F&G) companies in particular, three environmental drivers — reducing emissions, respecting natural resources, and protecting wildlife and ecosystems — ranked highest for importance among consumers, as shown in Figure 1.

This isn’t to say social drivers like health and well-being aren’t important to F&G customers — they are. But understanding consumers’ top concerns at a given time can help companies prioritize, in terms of both programming and messaging successes. Communicating accomplishments in the areas that matter most to consumers can translate into customer loyalty as well as brand switching. 

On the other hand, if a brand and its competitors are all communicating about the same things, it can be harder to stand out. In cases like these, a brand may opt to lean into an area that isn’t as much of a focus for peers and competitors. Or, if it finds it’s under-performing compared to peers on key issues that matter to consumers, it may decide to invest more in those areas and communicate an improvement story. 

Listening to consumers via data capture enables this kind of decision-making, helping brands to get the most return on their ESG investments.

Take, for example, these two anonymized F&G competitors from Australia, shown above. Both brands mapped their SRS in relation to the industry benchmark (the green line). Brand A clearly outshines Brand B on virtually all of the 13 drivers. The achievement gap in the areas most important to consumers, such as “reducing emissions”  is substantial enough to be a significant opportunity for Brand A to message that success to customers hungry for guidance on where to invest their purchasing power. Meanwhile, Brand B can see where it’s progressing and where further investments can help it improve credibility. 

ESG drivers differ across industries 

What weighs heaviest on consumers’ minds will vary across industries. For example, Glow found that governance and social drivers are the biggest influences on ESG credentials in the health insurance industry in the U.S., as shown in Figure 3. 

In travel and tourism, on the other hand, U.S. customers view all three divisions of environmental, social and governance factors as important for the sector to address (Figure 4).

In a balanced framework such as the latter, drilling further down into age, gender, geography, and competition among brands is vital to determine the focus for programs and messaging to avoid spreading investment and resources too thin.

Continuing to zero-in on what matters to who

Price and quality are typically the engines powering consumer choices, but business leaders may be surprised at how strong “sustainability” has become as a beacon to consumers looking for safe harbor for their purchasing dollars. 

This is especially true in the F&G sector — where 1 in 2 U.S. consumers have switched brands based on sustainability considerations, and 1 in 5  ranked ESG/sustainability as one of the top three drivers for deciding what brands to purchase, according to Glow data.

Diving deeper to look at age segmentation, millennials prized ESG/sustainability even higher, with 1 in 3 such consumers rating it as one of their top three considerations, behind price and quality. Further, 10 percent of millennials rated ESG/sustainability as the top influencer of their purchase decisions, even more than price and quality, Glow found.

These findings demonstrate the importance of ESG initiatives and messaging to any company’s bottom line. To fail in listening and responding to consumers in this regard is to surrender profits and reputation to competitors that are willing to leverage the feedback.

Data and surveys give a brand that feedback continuously since the measurements can be taken over set time periods, in connection with program launches or in tandem with media campaigns.

“The response from people taking these surveys is actually very clear. You can understand what it is that’s driving the consumer response and what’s driving the metric you receive,” said Tim Clover, CEO of Glow. “It allows you to line up the programs you’re running with the different areas and ask, ‘Are these the programs we should be communicating?’ If so, to whom do we communicate and through which media?”

Alignment of ESG programs with consumer expectations, coupled with alignment of messaging to bring about positive public perception of those programs, creates a winning combination for brands. 

The tools exist to know what ESG concerns consumers really care about. The decision to use those tools enables business leaders to enhance brand profitability while “doing the right thing.” 

This article series is sponsored by Glow and produced by the TriplePundit editorial team.

Image credits: georgerudy/Adobe Stock and Glow

Originally published by RDG.Today

A restaurant in Reading is taking the battle against rubbish to the streets. The KFC on Oxford Road is working to tackle the scourge of litter by taking matters into its own hands… or pickers.

It comes after the restaurant joined Keep Britain Tidy’s Great British Spring Clean programme as a headline partner.

Continue reading here.

On April 12, 2023, AEG’s ASCSC Community Foundation, LA Galaxy Foundation, and Kings Care Foundation, teamed up with the Los Angeles Lakers Youth Foundation, Kinecta Federal Credit Union, and AT&T to host Becca’s Closets’ pop-up prom dress giveaway “Yes! That’s My Dress” extravaganza at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, CA.

The event provided 200 high-school girls with financial needs an opportunity to make their prom memories special by selecting the perfect dress from more than 800 dresses. Dresses for the event were donated by TLC/Discovery Channel in partnership with Macy’s Prom Dress Collection, Adrianna Papell, BCBGeneration, Speechless and other designers.

“Prom night is an important event in a young woman’s life.” said Tamala Lewis, Senior Director Community Relations at Dignity Health Sports Park. “We are excited to once again host the annual prom dress giveaway, but Yes! That’s My Dress is about more than just prom. This event also helps empower these young ladies to know their value and gives them the confidence they need to achieve success.”

Volunteers from AEG and other participating organizations assisted the girls in selecting their perfect gowns. When a dress was found, the young ladies stepped into a mirrored booth for a photoshoot to claim their dress. The first 50 girls in attendance received a family pack of four tickets to the LA Galaxy’s Saturday, May 27 match against Charlotte FC at Dignity Health Sports Park.

Becca’s Closet donates formal dresses to high school girls with financial need so they can attend their school-sponsored military balls, homecomings and proms in style. New and gently worn dresses are donated to Becca’s Closet chapters by generous individuals, retailers and manufacturers, and chapter volunteers donate them to girls who need them. To learn more about the Yes! That’s My Dress event, click here.

April 13, 2023 /3BL Media/ – National Grid was recently approved by the U.S. Department of Defense as an industry partner for its SkillBridge program. DOD SkillBridge provides career development opportunities to service members approaching the end of their military commitment. Active duty service members can apply to spend the last six months of their commitment as an intern, bridging the gap between the end of their service and the beginning of their civilian careers.

“We have a long, proud history of hiring veterans of the U.S. armed forces,” said Celeste Schneider, National Grid’s chief people officer for New York. “DOD SkillBridge provides us with a new on-ramp for recruitment with exciting career opportunities for service members nearing their discharge date that maximize their military training and experience.”

Service members with at least six months of service remaining before their discharge can approach their unit commander about participating in a DOD SkillBridge internship. National Grid interns will receive rigorous hands-on training and work alongside our employees in the field. The interns retain their military pay and benefits, and all costs are covered by DOD SkillBridge.

National Grid has made an additional commitment to DOD SkillBridge interns. Those interns who meet company performance standards during their placement will be offered employment with National Grid upon their honorary discharge from the armed forces.

“We want the very best employees working for National Grid and DOD SkillBridge opens another door to access the world’s most highly-trained and motivated workforce – the U.S. armed forces.” Schneider said.

Now a senior field safety supervisor for National Grid, Jason Uhlig wished DOD SkillBridge existed when he began his transition from active duty with the U.S. Army. He spent his free time during the final few months of his active-duty service building resumes, applying for education benefits and exploring and applying for jobs.

“Having an opportunity to transition towards a more secure career path would have been ideal,” he said. Uhlig, currently a major in the U.S. Army Reserves, has spent more than 20 years in the Army.

Uhlig, who is one of National Grid’s leads for DOD SkillBridge, says that transitioning to civilian life is often difficult for active-duty service members and the program relieves some of the pressure of finding a job and preparing for life after the military.

“Having the opportunity that DOD SkillBridge affords to transitioning service members is a once in a lifetime chance,” he said. “Service members can then focus on securing a rewarding career, supporting their family and putting to work their valuable service leadership and technical experience.”

National Grid currently offers two positions through DOD SkillBridge:

Civil and Substation Supervisor (Syracuse)Customer Meter Service Supervisor (Albany)

The company plans to offer additional opportunities in New York and Massachusetts.

National Grid employs approximately 700 veterans, as well about 100 employees who are either active military reservists or members of National Guard units. Its Veterans Employee Resource Group provides learning and career development opportunities, and support to more than 600 employees of the company. Uhlig, who is the group’s co-chair, said veterans working for National Grid have found similarities between the company hierarchy and military hierarchies.

“The utility industry has many parallels to the military,” he said. “It is a 24/7 operational environment that abides by many bodies, laws and operating standards. We have rigorous performance and values-based review processes for our employees. And, the same leadership, technical and strategic principles of working for National Grid, or a regulated energy delivery company, apply as they would in a military career.”

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About National Grid 
National Grid (NYSE: NGG) is an electricity, natural gas, and clean energy delivery company serving more than 20 million people through our networks in New York and Massachusetts. National Grid is focused on building a path to a more affordable, reliable clean energy future through our fossil-free vision. National Grid is transforming our electricity and natural gas networks with smarter, cleaner, and more resilient energy solutions to meet the goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

For more information, please visit our website, follow us on Twitter, watch us on YouTube, like us on Facebook and find our photos on Instagram.

Contact: Jared Paventi | jared.paventi@nationalgrid.com | 315.427.1092