NextBillion - An Initiative of the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan

Wednesday, August 28, 2019

By Mike Hower

It’s no news flash that strong environmental, social and governance (ESG) performance is increasingly important for publicly traded companies. ESG investing has increased more than 17 percent annually over the past couple of years, according to McKinsey, and more than one-quarter of the total global assets under management — roughly $20 trillion — is invested according to ESG metrics.

For public companies, it’s critical to engage investors on ESG performance with effective communication and storytelling around their sustainability initiatives. And with so many high-profile companies going public this year, including Levi’s, Beyond Meat, Lyft, Uber, Airbnb and The We Company, it’s a good time to ask the question: does ESG also matter for companies looking to go public?

Photo courtesy of reynermedia.