Our final pillar is acting with integrity (governance) by embedding robust governance and ethical business practices in every area of our company to increase transparency and accountability, while protecting the security and data privacy of our customers.

Governance is at the core of ServiceNow’s approach to ESG. As a CFO, I firmly believe that good governance is how you earn trust. That’s because sound ESG management goes beyond defining how a business impacts and is impacted by the world. It mitigates risk, delivers competitive advantage, and builds stakeholder trust. It keeps us aligned, accountable, and provides transparency for all our stakeholders.

To understand how organizations are defining and meeting their ESG goals, ServiceNow and ThoughtLab recently conducted a global survey of 1,000 global C-level executives working in five industry sectors across 12 countries. Company sizes ranged from $350 million to more than $5 billion in annual revenue.

We sorted the survey respondents into three ESG maturity stages: beginners, intermediates, and leaders. We used 11 criteria to define these stages, from having an ESG strategy to incorporating ESG goals into their digital transformation efforts. This approach helped us identify the best practices of ESG leaders, along with the performance returns achieved by moving to the next stage of maturity.

The number one benefit for ESG leaders is, remarkably, increased revenue growth. Leaders say their boards and the C-suite are making ESG a top priority and that digital innovation is intrinsically linked to progress on ESG goals. They also report that ESG strategies and vision are key to attracting and retaining talent, customers, and shareholders. (Results from the ESG survey are highlighted throughout Quarterly.)

The right ESG strategy can mitigate business risk and deliver competitive advantage. It can also build trust, the ultimate human currency. That’s why we packed the Spring issue of Workflow Quarterly with insights to help business leaders optimize their ESG efforts. This is a journey without a destination, but a strong ESG structure can help companies solve some of the world’s greatest challenges.