A Day in the Life of an ESG Manager

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As businesses raise their social and environmental consciousness, the role of ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) becomes more pertinent and more central within numerous organisations, and certainly the majority of larger organisations. The importance of ESG has in turn led to the need for dedicated professionals to guide businesses along a more sustainable path, and possibly the strongest case in point is the role of ESG Manager.

Covering a multitude of areas from climate change to customer support, the role title may differ from one organisation to another but the importance to the organisations is clearly understood. Typing “ESG Manager” into a job search will bring up various results for titles including Diversity & Inclusion Program Manager, ESG Product Manager, and Senior Manager - ESG Strategy & Development. Thus the nature of a typical day in the life of an ESG Manager will understandably bear some core similarities across the different roles, though naturally that comes along with unique responsibilities depending on the key focus of the individual job.

The core duties of a typical ESG Manager’s working days involve a lot of stakeholder engagement within and outside the business, report writing, project monitoring, and managing policies and issues directly related to rankings (or ratings) that impact the ESG strategy of the organisation. 

Along with meetings and roundtables, there are likely to be internal reviews and plenty of phone calls in an average day for an ESG Manager. Reporting to senior management, the job of an ESG Manager is to help shape the organisation’s ESG roadmap and strategy, while taking note of the cost effectiveness and feasibility of each ESG proposal. They assume an advisory role to the business, consulting on matters relating to corporate strategy including corporate social responsibility, sustainability and ESG. 

To have a successful career in this role and beyond, it is important that the ESG Manager is comfortable with the requirements of engaging with people across the business and outside the business. They will be expected to lead client engagements and play a key role in collaborative initiatives that could cover anything from project management, engagement with regulators to running workshops and training programs and events. 

An ESG Manager will spend a portion of their time creating guidelines to raise internal awareness of ESG, as well as generating various tools and guidance material such as checklists, policies, procedures and other related program content, to align with best-practice frameworks and other artefacts. 

A final aspect of an ESG Manager’s responsibilities is to identify ESG risks and opportunities, as well as to keep abreast of significant ESG metrics and data. It is important they keep themselves updated on local, regional and national policies around energy and climate change, both through conversations with relevant members of the business as well as subscription to news alerts and websites. 

Experience of at least five years in a related field is considered appropriate grounding to work in ESG management. Bringing that insight to the table ensures that the right candidate is well-positioned to understand and report on key market drivers and how climate mitigation strategies can be applied to their chosen industry.


 

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