Fondazione Sodalitas: eSG Lab, The New Project to Support the Sustainable Transition of SMEs

eSG Lab is the new project of the SDA Bocconi School of Management promoted by Fondazione Sodalitas in collaboration with Fondazione Enel and Falck Renewables to support the sustainable development of companies of all sizes through the full integration of ESG issues in decision-making and governance processes.

eSG Lab aims has been set up to implement the commitment expressed by the 77 Italian business leaders who have joined CSR Europe’s CEOs Call to Action, the European appeal promoted in Italy by Fondazione Sodalitas to mobilise other companies, their stakeholders, civil society, and institutions towards sustainable and inclusive growth.

The project aims to develop a new strategic-organisational model and a tool for sharing knowledge and experience with which businesses can:

Respond to major environmental and social challenges.
Benefit from the resulting competitive advantages.
Help to build a sustainable economy in Italy.

The SDA Bocconi’s research team conducted interviews with a selected sample of CEOs from Fondazione Sodalitas’s member companies to understand the strategic vision of business leaders on sustainability issues and their perspective on SMEs and their transition towards more sustainable models.

From the interviews, it emerged the necessity to work at various levels to support the decision-making processes of SMEs from an ESG perspective to promote:

The evolution of corporate culture, developing and disseminating more appropriate sustainability governance models for SMEs.
The measurement and reporting of ESG performance of SMEs through clear, dedicated, simplified and concrete tools, frameworks and KPIs.
Awareness-raising initiatives, information, training, mentorship, partnerships, and networking initiatives.
The culture of sustainability to enable a virtuous circle to encourage the spread of substantial organisational and economic benefits for SMEs.

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