INGENIEUR
INGENIEUR
“ Powerful social value comes when a client and a contractor are able to work together on what ’ s appropriate to be delivered ,” says AtkinsRéalis associate social value consultant Laura Hampson .
Enfield Council ’ s head of Meridian Water regeneration project Jenny Offord says that there should be collaboration between local authorities and contractors . Local authorities have an idea of what social value elements they want and contractors can advise on how to deliver it .
“ To position additional social value on top of what we are already doing doesn ’ t work , so we need to find a way to embed it in our practices , which is something that we ’ re working towards .”
One of the challenges of embedding social value in projects is the lack of universal understanding of what social value is , according to social enterprise membership body Social Enterprise UK senior partnerships manager Nichola McAvoy .
A big issue is that there is no widely accepted way of measuring social value . “ Different organisations are launching new tools ,” Hampson says . “ So , it ’ s quite difficult to measure apples with apples .”
There is not enough training , shared purpose and language in this space
The most widely used tool is the national themes , outcomes and measures ( TOMs ) framework . TOMs are a set of social value measures agreed by industry experts designed to maximise impact in five areas – jobs , growth , social , environment and innovation . While it can be useful , skills and training organisation , People Plus social value lead Craig Corrigan says it can often lead to contractors inputting social value measures that will yield the best TOMs score , rather than thinking about what would be most appropriate for the scheme .
We need clients to get comfortable with what social value is important to them and for them to direct us at the tender stage .”
Henderson suggests that clients should be given guidance about how to measure social value specific to their projects . McAvoy adds that an updated regulatory framework is required “ so it ’ s super clear what it should mean and how it should be measured ”.
What are most CFOs doing now in terms of ESG reporting ( Forbes )
While many companies have been putting together ESG reports on their own for years , would you say that the new focus on it from the CFO ’ s office is moving the reporting more toward a mature and set process ?
Its maturity process is on-going , but because of the disparate standards and disparate industry foci and different geographical needs , it will be a while . You ’ ll have a crystallized view on Europe before long , and we ’ ll have a good understanding of what clients are doing or what financial services entities are doing , because they ’ ll converge on commonality within their groups . But it ’ ll evolve , and it may evolve to the point where the three letters ( ESG ) aren ’ t used anymore , and it will simply be considered doing business . That ’ s when you ’ ll know .
In five to ten years , it may be considered more BAU ( business as usual ). If everyone ’ s doing it , and therefore it ’ s not a new and high-focus area , but it ’ s baked into the daily life and work of companies and their operations . That goes back to the context then . You have an understanding of strategy and stakeholders and data and governance and reporting , and therefore are focused on the operations .
What is ESG ? ( Kearney Group )
ESG is a world of corporate performance data that helps us account for the environmental , social and governance behaviour of a company or investment . It ’ s one of those terms that most recognise , but not everyone understands .
ESG reflects a company ’ s :
● environmental performance , like its carbon emissions and the amount of water used ;
● social factors such as gender , race , diversity and inclusion ; and
● governance factors such as corporate risk management , tax and reporting practices .
The term was first coined by the United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative in their October 2005 Fleshfields Report . These days , ESG integration is generally regarded as one of the basic building blocks of a sustainable investment strategy .
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