ESG Decoded Podcast

“What's your background, and what does your day-to-day look like in your current role?”

This is the standard opening question to establish the guest's credentials and the scope of their work.

“How do you prioritize sustainability efforts when you have multiple stakeholders like customers, employees, and investors?”

This question probes the strategic decision-making process behind a company's ESG focus.

“What are the most promising sustainability levers for your company, and how do you identify them?”

This question seeks to uncover the key areas where a company believes it can have an outsized impact.

“Can you share any challenges or experiments that didn't work out as you expected?”

Asked after discussing successes, this question explores the learning process from failures.

“As the green transition progresses, have you added more sectors to your investment exclusion list?”

This is a specific policy question for investors regarding their screening criteria.

“Are you proactively looking for certain investment areas to accelerate the green shift?”

This question explores the proactive side of an investor's climate strategy, beyond just exclusions.

“Do customer expectations for things like speed and convenience compete with your sustainability goals?”

The host asks this to address common perceived trade-offs in the guest's industry.

“Who made the investment in a specific pilot program you mentioned?”

This is a direct probe into the financial commitment and business model behind a new initiative.

“What role can your company play in putting money to work for climate adaptation or mitigation?”

This question is aimed at guests in finance and investment, focusing on their capital allocation strategy.

“When investing in nature-based solutions, how do you ensure you can still meet ROI targets?”

This probes the financial viability and return expectations for emerging green investment classes.

“Is customer behavior change a key element of your sustainability strategy?”

This question explores how much the company relies on influencing its customers to achieve its goals.

“Do your customers and stakeholders actually expect you to be focused on sustainability?”

This gauges the perceived market demand and external pressure for the company's ESG work.