Our sustainable business framework
To demonstrate what is most important for our portfolio companies and engage with our investment professionals and portfolio companies on the topic of ESG, we have developed a bespoke framework, Hg’s Sustainable Business framework, outlining key ESG and Sustainability focus areas for software and service companies. Originally defined in 2017, the framework is based on extensive research, including interviews, benchmarking and external standards, and forms the basis of Hg’s ESG assessment which is completed with all portfolio companies during onboarding and annually thereafter.
Hg reviews the ESG framework on an annual basis to reflect key ESG trends, regulations, opportunities and risks. With ESG being such a prominent topic for businesses and regulators in the past year, our 2021 review resulted in an increased number of questions, including questions relating to the ESG Data Convergence Project, SASB Standard and ILPA Diversity in Action. Our 2021 assessment was the most comprehensive assessment so far, covering over 170 questions across three areas:
