Services

“Sustainability is the integration of environmental health, social equity, and economic vitality
in order to create thriving, healthy, diverse and resilient communities for this generation and generations to come.”
— UCLA Sustainability Committee.

ESG and Corporate Governance Due Diligence

ESG due diligence (in addition to legal and financial due diligence) has gained importance for, both investors and business owners/ founders owing to various reasons including

Being capital attractive and investing sustainably

ESG factors have become core part of investor strategy for investor community, globally and domestically, as deal-making or deal-breaking factor. Even in deal-making scenario, ESG diligence can result in price correction (upward or downward).
Various ESG issues such as corruption, carbon emission, child labour and board structure and executive compensation etc. affect the company’s performance and valuation.

The findings of the ESG due-diligence results in

Undertaking a gap-analysis and resolve the ESG issues, existing or in the making, to enhance company’s ESG performance and valuation in order derive premium in form of low cost of capital among other things.

Undertaking and risk and materiality assessment to create an ESG re-flag list or ESG matrix;

Design and execution of a business sustainability management action plan;

Establishing ESG governance framework;

Preemption, mitigation and management of an ESG crisis.

ESG reporting to regulators and stakeholders.

We customize ESG checklist specific to the global and domestic regulatory environment and standards, industry in which business operates and also determining the material risks in consultation with management and all relevant stakeholders. We have a state-of-the art technology driven platform for carrying out an effective and credible due diligence exercise with minimum resources (both financial and human).

ESG Communication and Reporting

Transparency and disclosure are the bedrock on which sustainable businesses thrive. We help companies and their leaders create their honest, true narrative of sustainability journey for all their stakeholders (including shareholders, investors, employees, customers, proxy advisors, regulators etc.). It is crucial that a company makes correct disclosures about ESG and economic impact and performance as per the letter and spirit of law, in sync with the international standards and best practices. It enhances company performance, brand and reputation as a responsible corporate citizen.

Our services include:

ESG/ integrated reporting or Business Responsible and Sustainability Reporting under Indian law/ as per international best practices including GRI sustainable reporting and Sustainable Accounting Standards
Assist organization in internal and external non-financial information disclosure management;

Plan and execute persuasive communications campaigns for external and internal stakeholders through various forums;

Develop sustainability communications strategies and reporting roadmaps

Design data collection and disclosure systems;

Business Sustainability Management (BSM)

The theme of sustainability has taken a centre stage in Indian business activity. Sustainability is no longer just a peripheral part of carrying on business in India but has become the way of doing business “Business-Unusual”. Sustainability/ ESG ecosystem is complicated and navigating it could mean finding oneself in a minefield as it exists in a complex and dynamic regulatory environment, which requires an integrated, real-time basis approach to ESG strategy, ESG integration, risk and compliance.

We help your company navigate the ESG landscape. We work with the governing board and internal teams on BSM and ESG strategy to integrate sustainability into the core of the organisation. We make a time-line driven BSM action plan, which involves identifying and prioritizing the most relevant sustainability / ESG themes, taking into account the impact each topic has on the organization and on its stakeholders.

Strategy for integrating sustainability optimizing your capital attractiveness, right valuation and investment
Complete overhaul of purpose, values, board strategy and business plan to bring ESG factors at the highest levels of decision-making to optimize ESG performance.
identification and fair representation of risks and opportunities that business is facing and its impact;
ESG integration with the objective to reduce risk, improve sustainability, increase efficiency and maintain long term reputation and economic gains.

Alignment with reporting standards and frameworks
Balanced and transparent disclosure of progress and impacts
disclosure advice, deck preparation and executive coaching for investor meetings
Reviewing and modifying the risk and compliance framework for the organization including business responsibility framework
Customized compliance advice under environment, labour and employment legislations including gender diversity, safety and skill upgradation, prevention of sexual harassment at work place, organisational structure, employee code of conduct etc.

We also assist in execution of the BSM action plan through a technology driven dashboard which monitors key sustainability metrics and initiatives with monitoring of assigned roles for the internal sustainability team.

For assistance in execution and implementation of BSM Action Plan, please refer to our Shared Chief Sustainability Officer Services.

For ESG Due Diligence / Assessment/ Evaluation please refer to our ESG and Corporate Governance Due Diligence/ Assessment / Evaluation.

For assistance in ESG communication and reporting, please refer to our ESG Communications and Reporting.

Shared Chief Sustainability Officer (CSO) Services

Implementation of a Business Sustainability Management Plan ESG Strategy requires a robust Sustainability Governance Framework including a gold standard sustainability team (Lead to a mid-level team member). The outsourced sustainability solutions bring objectivity in creating, implementing and monitoring ESG strategy without any conflict of interest or motivated agendas to assist and advise an organization in its sustainability journey. Therefore, solution lies in engaging a shared-CSO service “to bring value with values at a (small) value”.

Conduct ESG assessment, undertake gap analysis basis which create a Business Sustainability Management Plan with timelines and assigned duties for internal sustainability lead and the team.

Work with Board or senior leadership to develop the purpose led sustainability strategy (a long-term, strategic vision) that balances non-financial objectives as part of the business strategy; – measurable and monitorable goal setting and create accountability mechanism.

Develop and embed robust sustainability governance and monitoring mechanisms;

Embedding sustainability across key functions into the way employees work as an organisation by building awareness and understanding; achieving alignment around a clear purpose and strategy; instilling a sense of responsibility and agency; and addressing critical capability gaps.

Hiring and/or training the sustainability team – trends development, nuances of ESG and sustainability and its relevance to the organization.

ESG [including CSR, POSH, ABC and legal] compliances in an integrated, real-time basis approach.
Advise on the internal & external communication for sustainability – communicating and marketing sustainability campaigns to internal and external stakeholders.
Advise on sustainability reporting (as per domestic and/or international standards) – to both internal and external stakeholders, as per the Indian reporting requirements and international standards.

Develop corrective action plans and mitigation plans to avoid potential liability (corporate and director) issues.

Regulatory engagement and representation on ESG issues during investigations/ inquiry and/or enforcement action.

For ESG Due Diligence / Assessment/ Evaluation please refer to our ESG and Corporate Governance Due Diligence

For assistance in ESG communication and reporting, please refer to our ESG Communications and Reporting

Institutional Investor advisory, Compliance & Reporting

Green Finance”, “Climate Finance”, “Sustainable Finance”, and “ESG Finance” are presently blooming. “Green financing,” “responsible investing,” and “sustainable investing” pertain to the integration of ESG in decisions influencing investments. Globally and domestically institutional investors are considered to have fiduciary duty towards their own beneficiaries and stewardship responsibility towards their investee companies. We work closely with our clients from investment community to provide range of services including reporting on policy for discharging stewardship responsibilities, monitoring investee companies, intervention in investee companies on issues such as ESG, voting policy and voting activity etc.

Strategy for corporate and sustainable investing (international regulations/ guidelines/ UNPRI etc.) advise;

Structuring transactions and drafting transaction documents;

produce ESG policies and stewardship reports in compliance with regulatory requirements and also aligned with best practices (such as those developed by the UN Principles of Responsible Investment);

engagement with investee companies (board and management), advisory (key trends and developments),

comprehensive legal and ESG Due Diligence of the prospective investee companies and periodic ESG assessment of portfolio companies post investment

sustainable and regulatory communication, representation and reporting

Corporate Governance Board Advisory Services

India has adopted stakeholder capitalism in its company law. Therefore, Board is obligated to act in the interest of its shareholders and other stakeholders including employees, customers or communities and protection of the environment. India has long been focusing on corporate and director liabilities under its legislative and regulatory framework. SEBI prescribed Business Responsibility and Sustainability Framework require companies to disclose frequency of assessment by the Board of Directors on the business responsible performance of the company. We can advise such Board or designated committee (along with designated Business Responsibility Director/ sustainability officer) in carrying out the ESG assessment and consequent ESG integration, if necessary. Our spectrum of services for the Board includes:

Promoter and C-suit advisory
Succession Planning
Directors’ responsibilities and liabilities
Board structure, evaluation, separation of Chairman and Managing Director
Executive compensation – (C-suit packages, executive compensation and liability insurance) framework and indemnity contracts
Corporate governance and ESG in context of director and corporate liability

Envision and refinement of policies to create a robust framework as per National Guidelines for Responsible Business Conduct / BRR Framework under the SEBI
Listing Regulations and international standards
Business responsibility and sustainability reporting
Sustainability governance framework including internal sustainability teams
Board and corporate culture
Robust policies and enforcement mechanism

Bring alignment around business purpose and ambition in relation to sustainability, to identify strategic priorities and to inspire ownership and action.
Masterclasses on Directors (IDs, investor nominees, non-executive directors) responsibilities and liabilities
Upskilling and trainings
- ESG trainings for directors and KMPs, risk and internal audit teams,
- Crisis management trainings and simulation exercises,
- Anti-bribery and anti-corruption trainings,
- Employees ESG training.

Sustainable Startups and SMEs

Sustainability is not restricted only to public companies or big businesses. It is also pertinent for the Startups and SMEs being the backbone of any economy including India, which is slated to be worlds’ third largest economy by 2030. India is also the third largest startup ecosystem in the world. As the country aspires to be Atmanirbhar (self-reliant) for its own needs but also become the supply chain to world (‘Make in India for the World), there is going to be additional impetus on ecosystem to create more startups that cater to the domestic and global demands, while contributing to the Indian economy. These startups and SMEs to engage with global companies would necessarily need to meet global standards on sustainability as these are applicable through global company’s jurisdictions. These companies are already required to make ESG disclosures as part of the bid-conditions or on-boarding criteria for being value-chain partners to their global clients.

Startups can be capital attractive to investment community while catering to the demands of customers (domestic and global) for sustainable business and products only if they integrate sustainability right from the very inception. We advise founders and startups from the ideation stage to build a sustainable business. We provide wide variety of services that include:

Devising sustainability driven purpose guiding the corporate action;

Advising on applicable policy and regulatory framework, applying and obtaining for applicable approvals and consents;

Devising strategy to avail funding from the right kind of source amongst the spectrum of options including seed funding, angel investment, venture capital and private equity funding, ESG and impact funds and government schemes and funding options;

Drafting and negotiating transaction documents including investment agreement, share subscription and shareholders agreement, founders agreements, ESOP etc.

All corporate policies including code of conducts, related governance and reporting mechanism;

Applying, bidding for engagement and agreements with global companies and meeting the applicable assessments and compliance standards.