In January 2007, when Duquesne was recruiting students for our first MBA Sustainability cohort, the cover of what was then BusinessWeek magazine invited readers to “Imagine a world in which eco-friendly and socially responsible practices actually help a company’s bottom line.”
Less than a decade later, McKinsey describes sustainability as “profits with purpose” and reports that “companies pursue sustainability because it has a material financial impact.”
- Companies with high ESG ratings outperform market in the medium and long-term and have lower cost of debt and equity.
- Companies in Carbon Disclosure and Carbon Performance Leadership Indices have superior stock market returns.
- Efficient use of resources is an indicator of overall superior financial performance.
- Socially responsible investment accounted for more than 11% of assets under management in the United States ($3.74 trillion) in 2013.
As MBA students with a focus in sustainability, we are preparing to strengthen the business case for the positive change we want to see in the world!
Source: “Profits with purpose: How organizing for sustainability can benefit the bottom line,” McKinsey, 2014
