Conference Sessions

Defining and Refining the Metrics that Matter: Corporate and ESG Analyst Perspectives

Carol Singer Neuvelt, Executive Director, NAEM
Kyle Whitaker, Manager, SustainAbility

This opening session will set the stage for today’s discussion by providing a historical look at the evolution of third party sustainability rankings and the current key players. This session features a high level summary of NAEM’s research findings on internal corporate sustainability metrics and highlight how they frequently differ from the metrics of interest to external ratings firms.

EHS and Sustainability Managers won’t want to miss this chance to see what key performance indicators (KPIs) their peers are tracking and how they are used to drive increased performance. Sustainability analysts will get a rare glimpse at how leading corporations measure, track, and manage their sustainability posture and performance. Collectively we’ll examine some key differences between corporate metrics and external indicators and tease out the lessons we can learn from these gaps, as we work to zero in on the “Metrics that Matter.”

Developing a Strategy to Manage Your “Sustainability” Reputation: Lessons Learned from EHS, Sustainability, CSR and Investor Relations Managers

Jim Cline, Director Environmental Affairs & Sustainability, Cardinal Health Inc.
Elizabeth (Tish) Lascelle, Senior Director, Strategy & Assurance, Worldwide Environment, Health & Safety, Johnson & Johnson
Gary Niekerk, Director Global Citizenship, Intel Corporation

This session will offer practical insights form three companies as they reflect and share lessons learned from their sustainability reporting strategies. Attendees from the both the corporate and external research and ratings side will be encouraged to share their tips and insights as to how companies can establish and maintain an accurate and positive sustainability reputation. The session will provide attendees lessons on how to:

Prioritize and decide which third party surveys to complete
Correct misinformation about your company that has been reported
Post and report information online
Work internally with investor relations and EHS teams

ESG Roundtable: Shining a light on the ESG analytic processes

Mark Bateman, Director of Research, IW Financial
Simon MacMahon, Director Advisory Services, North America, Sustainalytics

Speakers in this session will discuss their criteria and approaches for analyzing corporate data. Participants will have a chance to raise questions and pursue dialogue with these panelists on their perspectives on how corporate sustainability data is used by investors, how ESG research/analysis outputs can be of benefit to companies, and why it is important for companies to participate (i.e., share information) with ESG researchers.

Roundtable Discussion - Toward a Common Goal: Providing Meaningful Information to Investors

Kimberly Gladman, Director of Research and Risk Analytics, Governance Metrics International
David Loehwing, Director, Sustainability Research Department, Pax World Management Co.
Sandy Nessing, Managing Director Sustainability & ESH Strategy, American Electric Power Co.

ESG researchers must continually provide meaningful sustainability ratings that cover a broad array of companies and industries. They often face this challenge with limited information companies and gaps or limitations in the data received.

In this session, representatives from ESG researchers and Investment Managers will discuss what information and perspectives are of most interest to them and their customers. Researchers will also discuss actions that corporate managers could undertake to improve the accuracy, coherence, and utility of the evaluations, ratings, and rankings that are produced by external ESG research organizations. A corporate representative will share similar thoughts and concerns around process and limitations that they face, with the ultimate goal of identifying opportunities for process improvements and information flow on both sides.

Standardizing Sustainability Metrics: What does the future hold?

Michael Muyot, President, CRD Analytics
Mark Tulay, Founder & CEO, Sustainability Risk Advisors

With sustainability squarely in the business mainstream, the rush to figure out how to define and measure it is on! From ESG researchers and investors to NGOs, Corporate CEOs, and WalMart, everyone has a different prospective on what metrics matter.

Hear strategic players who stand to have a strong impact on the future of standardized sustainability metrics discuss the factors and drivers they see having the biggest impact and explore likely scenarios for what sustainability reporting and metrics will look like in 5,10 and 20 years.

Resource Café and Networking Reception

This catered reception provides a relaxed environment for attendees to meet and talk with ESG research and ranking entities in a smaller group or one-on-one environment. In addition to informal networking, representatives from ESG Rating and Ranking entities will have designated tables to meet and answer questions and share literature about their firms.

Questions?

Contact Mike Mahanna, Program Manager, at (202) 986-6616.