Why create an ESG strategy?

We have just drawn up our first ESG strategy for Fourth Day. This time last year we didn’t think we needed one. We’ve always tried to behave ethically, chosen a green option if there was one, and recorded many processes and policies in a vast handbook prepared by an HR specialist. Surely there wasn’t much else we could be doing? 

As we started advising some of our clients on how to communicate what they stand for, however, we took a closer look at our own setup. We had “values”, which were nicely documented, but what were we doing to live up to them? Were we reviewing our policies regularly? What exactly did our team think about our working conditions? 

Having written and read much on the subject of greenwashing, we were very reluctant to publish anything that would be seen as virtue signalling, but agreed on producing an action plan for ourselves. This evolved into an existential exercise in which we questioned everything about the organisation and what exactly we were trying to do. We carried out surveys among our own team – in the UK and internationally – and also asked other stakeholders, including partners and clients, what mattered most to them. Then we sorted through it all, remembered what mattered to us as well, and turned it into our new strategy. 

We had “values”, which were nicely documented, but what were we doing to live up to them? Were we reviewing our policies regularly? What exactly did our team think about our working conditions? 

Xanthe Vaughan Williams Director

We haven’t set ourselves the target of bringing about world peace. Fourth Day is a PR agency working with technology businesses – we aren’t a charity and we’re not a campaigning organisation. But there are many things we can do through the people we work with and the way we conduct ourselves. Perhaps unsurprisingly, as our UK offices are both in city centres, our team cares about homelessness. While Fourth Day doesn’t work in this area, we can choose a charity partner that does. If we want to do more for the environment than just asking the landlord who supplies the electricity, we can make it our job to go out and find companies whose technology is helping. We even took the bold step of asking the team what they would value in terms of flexibility and working practices and adjusted our structure accordingly. 

Our strategy is published below and contains the targets that we have set ourselves. If you’re interested in doing the same, we’d be very happy to share our experience with you and help you through the process. 

Download ESG Strategy 4 mb