Board toolkit to support action on climate change
Developed a publicly available toolkit to help boards drive measurable action on climate change.
Combining insights gleaned from companies leading on climate change with core strategy and change management frameworks, the pragmatic, action-oriented board toolkit was launched to support non-executive directors across Europe.
Context
Our client had set up a network for UK NEDs, to support those calling for action on climate change around the board table, arming them with the data and tools to lead the conversation and drive change.
The client and its network members were making good progress on improving UK board awareness of the risks and opportunities posed by climate change. But members needed help translating that awareness into meaningful, measurable action. We were asked to develop a board “toolkit” that would enable board directors to move from “why” to “how”, to address the risks and opportunities of climate change.
Approach
The team identified and interviewed 11 corporates leading on climate change across a range of sectors and at different stages of the climate change journey, to understand their learnings and recommendations.
The interviews confirmed our hypothesis that climate change is best approached as a strategic business issue, which can be analysed and planned for like others. Integrating a range of core consulting frameworks with the learned experience of the interviewees, the toolkit became a pragmatic resource for NEDs to reach into for frameworks and best practice examples, to help i) prioritise climate change, ii) define a strategy to tackle it, and iii) ensure organisational action and embed positive change.
Impact
The toolkit was launched to the UK membership as well as to our own client network and the public in June 2020. It was adopted by the expanding international chapters of the NED network, and has been translated into a number of other languages to reach new audiences.
The project’s insights have been distilled into “11 principles” which have been widely shared across media and social networks. To read them, and to access the toolkit, click here