The challenge
The past several years have brought significant headwinds across every industry, pushing businesses into sustainability and ESG. Increased risk from supply chain disruptions, climate impacts, customer demands, economic uncertainty, and investor and regulatory pressures have motivated entire sectors to fold sustainability-related factors into long-term resilience plans and corporate strategy.
Our client, a law firm operating internationally, was looking to develop its own sustainability programs to ensure that it was meeting or exceeding industry benchmarks and adhering to mandatory requirements, such as California’s SB 261 (The Climate-Related Financial Risk Act) and the EU Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive. As both industry peers and key strategic partners began to raise the bar on ESG programs, our client embraced the opportunity to lead on sustainability initiatives to remain competitive, strengthen stakeholder confidence, and align with evolving global ESG standards.
ADEC ESG’s industry experience, ability to work cohesively with client teams, and expertise developing comprehensive sustainability programs from the ground up made our team a natural fit to fulfill our client’s needs.
Our solution
Our engagement with our client has scaled significantly as our relationship has grown. Over the course of this close partnership, our expert team has worked seamlessly with the client’s internal team, empowering them to shape their program in a way that best fits their business and their goals.
The expansion of our client’s sustainability program spans multiple key areas across strategy and overall program development, implementation, target-setting, metrics management, and disclosure and reporting.
Sustainability and ESG program management
Sustainability programs are unique to each individual business. In the case of this client, our goal was to first understand the current status of its program, set up systems to monitor progress, and overall operationalize its ESG program.
In order to establish a baseline and set the stage for roadmap development, we worked with our client to pinpoint key issues and priorities. A materiality assessment identified and analyzed ESG topics that were most impactful and relevant to the client and its stakeholders, while an analysis of regulatory risk examined jurisdictional applicability of any current or emerging regulations.
Next, our team developed a detailed topical roadmap that prioritized sustainability initiatives by value and feasibility, with information on key resourcing and timelines. This included support on target-setting and tracking in line with client goals, industry trends, and the needs of key stakeholders.
We also supported the implementation of many roadmapped initiatives, including:
- Staff training on sustainability topics
- Policy development
- Climate-related risk assessment
- Emissions reductions (detailed below)
- Disclosure and reporting improvements (detailed below)
To ensure long-term impact and continuous improvement, we established processes to regularly evaluate progress and adapt efforts as needed. By embedding sustainability considerations into day-to-day operations and decision-making, the client continues to strengthen internal alignment and position itself to meet rising stakeholder expectations and regulatory requirements.
Decarbonization plan development
Several key aspects of our client’s sustainability program are tied to emissions reductions. Mandatory and voluntary external sustainability reporting, annual reports, and customer ESG requests all rely heavily on the client’s ability to demonstrate progress made against GHG emissions reduction goals, and the scope of such a project meant that it needed to be prioritized early on in the process.
Climate scenario analysis and risk assessments analyzed the client’s emissions-related risks and resilience, including transition risks and opportunities, physical climate risks, and resilience and adaptive capacity. This information helped the client prioritize potential emissions reduction initiatives as well as prepare for risk reporting, such as a mandatory TCFD-aligned report for California’s SB 261.
Given the importance of robust data systems within any decarbonization plan, we supported our client in implementing a number of operations data and systems improvements. We also worked with the client on ongoing supplier engagement initiatives, assessing supply chain members and engaging strategic suppliers in a way that supported our client’s emissions reduction goals.
GHG inventory development
To support decarbonization efforts and meet regulatory compliance, we annually develop a complete GHG inventory for scopes 1, 2, and 3 for our client for the past several years. This has included data collection at both the site-specific and organizational level, emissions calculations consistent with GHG Protocol standards, and preparation of a compliant inventory that is able to be used year-over-year for voluntary and mandatory external reporting aligned with multiple frameworks. Annual GHG inventories also enable the client to track progress towards goals and develop targeted projects to implement strategic initiatives where most impactful.
External sustainability reporting
Our client’s global presence entails a wide range of reporting and compliance obligations, each with its own set of requirements, timelines, and expectations. Working closely with the client team on nurturing its sustainability program for the past several years has enabled us to apply a highly detailed perspective and ensure that our client’s hard work and continued progress are clearly communicated.
- Annual sustainability reports: Our team has worked hand-in-hand with the client to create its yearly sustainability reports from start to finish, including vision and strategy, data collection and interviews, technical writing, and design and layout.
- Third-party frameworks: As a CDP Accredited Solutions Provider and an Approved EcoVadis Training Partner, we have completed CDP Climate Change and EcoVadis questionnaires on behalf of our client for several years. We have also helped address and respond to UN-related priorities, such as aligning the client’s activities to the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.
- Client submissions: Many of our client’s customers are passionately committed to sustainability. As such, these customers work to motivate their vendors and partners to more closely align with their own ESG goals. To help strengthen our client’s relationships with these customers, we have developed customer-specific responses to questionnaires and sustainability requests.
Results and Deliverables
Strategy and program management
- Materiality assessment
- Climate-related scenario analysis and risk assessment
- Sustainability and ESG target-setting and program roadmapping
- Sustainability-focused staff training and workshops
- Sustainability policy development
Decarbonization planning and implementation
- Decarbonization evaluation, strategy, and implementation
- Emissions data systems improvement
- Supplier engagement strategy and implementation
- Climate transition plan
- Complete GHG inventory for scopes 1, 2, and 3 (annual)
Sustainability disclosure and reporting
- Fully developed sustainability report (annual)
- CDP Climate Change disclosure completion (annual)
- EcoVadis disclosure completion (annual)
- UN SDG activity alignment
- Client ESG request response development
