CEOs shift focus to the “S” in ESG

By Staff | March 23, 2021 | Last updated on March 23, 2021
2 min read
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The CEOs of Canadian publicly traded companies are far more focused on social issues than they used to be, according to a survey from KPMG.

KPMG’s latest Global CEO Outlook pulse survey found that 100% of Canadian CEOs are now focused on the social aspect of their companies’ environmental, social and governance (ESG) practices — up from 64% six months earlier.

Many CEOs have been thinking about their “corporate purpose” when it comes to responding to the pandemic, according to the survey.

KPMG found that 80% of CEOs said their corporate purpose helped them understand what they had to do to meet the needs of stakeholders during the pandemic. Sixty per cent used their corporate purpose as a guide to their pandemic response with employees, customers, suppliers, investors and the public at large.

These findings are consistent with a report from S&P Global Ratings, which concluded that Covid-19 has accelerated a shift to “stakeholder capitalism.”

The KPMG survey also found that CEOs are more optimistic about Canada’s economic prospects than they were six months earlier.

Eighty-one per cent of respondents said they were confident about Canada’s three-year growth prospects, up from only 48% six months earlier. Eighty-six per cent were confident about their own companies’ growth prospects, predicting annual growth of 2.5%.

KPMG surveyed nearly 1,300 international CEOs in January and February of last year and followed up with a “pulse survey” of 315 chief executives in July and August to see how their opinions had changed during the pandemic. For further insights, see KPMG’s report.

Advisor.ca staff

Staff

The staff of Advisor.ca have been covering news for financial advisors since 1998.