6 minute read 18 Jul 2023
sustainable_value2

How can slowing climate change accelerate your financial performance?

Kiara Konti
By Kiara Konti

EY Greece Partner, Sustainability Services Leader

Proud to be working with people who contribute in creating a better working world. Advocate of responsibility and delivering results. Mother of two.

6 minute read 18 Jul 2023
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  • EY Sustainable Value Study Greece 2023 (Download in Greek)

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Companies that take effective action on climate change, not only create long-term value for the planet and a broader set of stakeholders, but also drive financial value.

The EY Sustainable Value Study Greece 2023 was conducted this year for the first time in Greece, following EY's first global survey, Sustainable Value Study, published in 2022. The study was conducted in parallel with three other Central and Southeast European countries - Poland, the Czech Republic, and Romania. The aim of the study is to understand the actions and initiatives that businesses in Greece are taking to address climate change, as well as, the value these actions create in relation to business expectations, and to explore the barriers that prevent them from doing more as well.

The businesses that have participated in the study have already taken - to a greater or lesser extent - action on climate, as shown by their responses, and have reached at least a basic level of maturity about addressing climate change. Therefore, it is important to note that the findings of the study are not representative of all Greek businesses but relate to those that have already begun their climate journey.

According to the study, Greek businesses appear to feel less exposed to climate-related risks than businesses globally, with physical risks being a concern for only one in two (53%), compared to 83% in the rest of the world. This finding is unexpected, considering how often our country experiences long-lasting (e.g. drought) and severe weather occurrences, which have become more frequent and noticeable in recent years.

Companies that take decisive climate action, do not just create more value for the planet, and various stakeholders - the society, customers, and employees - but also capture more financial value for themselves such as revenue growth and earnings. At EY, we call this ''value-led sustainability''. 45% of companies in Greece, and 69% globally, report that they have captured higher financial value from their climate initiatives than expected. This finding challenges the belief that the positive impact of climate actions is mainly captured in non-financial indicators.

Sustainable value

Companies are reducing emissions, but too slowly and not fast enough

96% of companies surveyed in Greece have made a public commitment to tackle climate change. So far, they have achieved an 18% reduction in emissions, compared to the baseline year. In order to limit the global temperature increase compared to the pre-industrial era to below the 1.5°C limit, a 45% reduction is needed by 2030.

However, the commitments of Greek organizations fall short of this target: only 44% have made a specific public commitment by 2030, while just one in three organizations (34%) plans to reduce emissions by 45% or more at some point in the future.

So far,

96%

of companies surveyed have made a public climate change commitment.

Only

44%

of companies, surveyed have a public commitment by 2030.

A Value-Led Sustainability approach is driving financial impacts

45% of respondents have captured higher than expected financial value as a result of their climate change actions. A holistic approach to sustainability that takes into account financial benefits, as well as benefits for employees and customers, tends to deliver more value to the planet.

The further companies go, the better their returns

Most companies are still in the early stages of turning public commitments into action, with most progress being made on measurement and governance.

Companies leading on action take a broader approach. They are more likely to report significantly higher financial value than expected and have a larger reduction in emissions to-date.

According to their progress on climate change actions, companies are segmented into three groups:

The study measured the performance of the companies on climate change actions and based on this performance, classified them into three groups.

Pacesetters have completed most actions to address climate change, explorers are at an intermediate stage of completing actions and form the largest group, while observers will have to intensify their efforts to reach the desired outcome in the future.

The findings indicate that, when compared to the global sample, Greek businesses have significant room for improvement. At international level, 32% of the surveyed companies are categorized as ''pacesetters'' while only 9% fall within this category in Greece. Similarly, in our country, 52% of companies are categorized as ''explorers'' (compared to 45% globally), while 39% as ''observers'' (compared to 23% in the global sample). The findings indicate the importance of focusing on both explorers and observers in our country, aiming to enhance their efforts and improve their performance on climate actions.  

Ways to adopt value-led sustainability

EY presents a number of initiatives and actions that businesses should undertake to create value from their climate agenda, including, but not limited to, the following initiatives:

  • A list of initiatives that companies should consider taking:

    • Challenge your ambition. Businesses are encouraged to set more ambitious targets to meet the goals set forth in the Paris Agreement.
    • Recognize the complexity of driving true impact on emissions reduction and build in measurements to track progress and assess ROI from the onset.
    • Collaborate within your sector and across sectors. This is a collective challenge and working with industry groups will accelerate change.
    • Influence your supply chain. Many companies have more opportunities to influence emission reduction through their supply chains than their own organization.
    • Invest in talent to meet this challenge. Prioritize hiring specialists as well as upskilling across organizational functions.
    • Develop a culture of collaboration internally. Building a culture of collaboration within organizations is considered essential to meet business needs, regulatory requirements and to effectively manage change.
    • Set objectives. Developing a set of clearly articulated and measurable objectives will increase efficiency and accelerate progress.

  • Methodology

    The study was conducted between 2 and 15 February 2023 and draws on insights from 75 business executives with responsibilities in sustainability, including Presidents and CEOs of private and public firms, operating across different sectors of the Greek economy.

Show resources

  • Download the full version of the study in Greek

    pdf (5 MB)

Summary

Companies that take decisive climate action, do not just create more value for the planet, and various stakeholders – the society, customers, and employees – among others, but also capture more financial value for themselves, on measures such as revenue growth and earnings. The aim of the EY Sustainable Value Study Greece 2023 is to help understand what actions companies are taking to address climate change, what value they expect and are receiving from these actions and barriers to doing more. 

About this article

Kiara Konti
By Kiara Konti

EY Greece Partner, Sustainability Services Leader

Proud to be working with people who contribute in creating a better working world. Advocate of responsibility and delivering results. Mother of two.

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