“ESG is the next peak after DEI”, stated Keshav Prasad, Chief Strategist – ESG Consulting, Avtar Group. He was speaking as a panelist at the 2023 Best of the Best Conference by Avtar and Seramount themed, #GlidetoInclusion. “For those companies who have excelled and implemented systems, processes, culture, and behaviors, the glide or journey from DEI to ESG becomes much easier,” he added. Underlining the pertinent aspects of building DEI-centric, and socially sustainable workplaces, Keshav laid out the various factors surrounding the ESG framework, intriguing a global audience heeding to insightful discussions and conversations at the conference in the session ‘Unpacking DEI on the ESG Canvas’.
Besides exploring the starting points of ESG, the panel walked the audience through some best practices that companies are incorporating within their system. “We do a complete lifecycle of products and see which of those products can be made more sustainable products in the future,” commented Arnab Goswami, India HR Director, Lear Corporation, adding to the other Social Impact Investments that include supplier diversity, supplier compliance with labor laws, pollution norms. He added, “ESG is a new subject, and nothing can come without a commitment from the top leadership.” Promisingly, Lear has announced that they will be carbon neutral by 2050.
On Socially Responsible Investments, Punam Kadwani, Director, Engineering and India Lead, Women, Worley Network, highlighted their impactful works. “A motivated and engaged workforce brings in productivity and is directly related to good profitability. We have a project, ‘Prerana’, which is completely led by women from project management in each discipline. The leadership vision for this was clear as it said we will not be able to achieve a NetZero future without the equal participation and perspectives of our women workforce,” Punam said.
Worley Network partners with 28 CSR partners in areas like education, women empowerment, sustainable livelihoods, health, and sanitation.
Considering it is time for higher levels of cognizance of the social, environmental, and governance factors and practices, the panel discussion handed a new helm to the hundreds of DEI professionals attending the conference from the best of the best companies list. Bhaskar Prasad, Principal Strategist, ESG Consulting, Avtar Group, moderated the session.
