Environmental and Social Governance Consulting

Environmental and Social Governance Consulting

Develop the right internal structure to drive accountability and performance on the ESG and sustainability issues that matter most to your business.

Third Partners draws from decades of experience in organizational management to create a sound approach to managing your most critical ESG and sustainability priorities.

Define strategic governance channels to effectively manage sustainability-related risks and opportunities

Clarify managerial accountability to drive improvement in ESG areas

Create internal alignment that advances progress on ESG and sustainability issues

Our Approach to Sustainability and ESG Governance

We work closely with your leadership team and business unit leaders to understand the current ownership of issues related to environmental and social impact performance, which may be matrixed across various roles and departments. Then, we propose, author and help socialize a variety of new management tools. This process typically involves on-site and remote workshops and planning sessions with multiple managers.

Throughout the engagement we:

1. Establish defined roles & responsibilities to enable your organization to make progress on key issue

2. Produce organizational charts, accountability matrices, and other planning tools to precisely define governance (the “G” in ESG) for each material issue you manage

3. Establish, review, and improve critical policies and procedures in all areas of the business that impact social and environmental performance

4. Establish KPIs, metrics and internal reporting plans to track progress on sustainability goals

5. Work with your managers to ensure they have the skills, resources, and specific action plans to successfully drive the necessary business transformation

Corporate Governance Consulting Case Study: JS Held

JS Held, a rapidly growing consulting firm and trusted source for technical, scientific and financial expertise, came to Third Partners after recognizing their clients’ increasing interest in their commitment to ESG and sustainability. The JS Held team enlisted our experts to develop a right-sized internal governance structure, strategic roadmap, and action plan for managing sustainability initiatives. They also requested that we support the integration of ESG and sustainability within all key service lines and promote the company’s ESG ambitions, goals, and performance among employees, investors, and customers. To achieve those objectives, Third Partners conducted interviews with major internal stakeholders and used the outcomes to map individuals, committees and business units working on sustainability to the firm’s current governance structure. We then revised and improved this structure to create greater clarity around roles, responsibilities and lines of accountability. 

Following a corporate strategy and sustainability governance consultation that spanned six months, JS Held took decisive action by promoting the project leader into a new sustainability management role to implement the Third Partners action plan and launch each element of the new ESG and sustainability governance structure.

Corporate Governance Consulting FAQ

Corporate governance typically applies to large public companies and describes how business oversight such as Board composition and executive compensation are handled in order to meet legally mandated requirements e.g. U.S. SEC rules. Unlike compliance-driven corporate governance, the “G” in ESG pertains to companies of all different sizes, stages of growth and ownership structures, including privately held companies. Third Partners consults with companies exclusively regarding their strategy for managing critical environmental and social issues within the business. Sustainability governance is typically an overlay on traditional compliance-driven corporate governance and may complement, but will never supercede, a company’s overall corporate governance strategy, policies and procedures.

Whether or not a company has a formal ESG reporting strategy, all companies that are serious about driving positive environmental and social impact need an internal structure to create performance targets and accountability for non-financial issues that are important to stakeholders. Without a formal governance structure, and supporting policies and procedures, companies may experience costly managerial symptoms including gradual change, confusion, and false starts.

Fractional Chief Sustainability Officer Q&A

A fractional CSO is a part-time or temporary sustainability expert who provides strategic guidance on sustainability projects, helping organizations set goals and craft strategies without the cost of a full-time executive. This role is typically filled by a generalist with extensive experience in cross-functional project management, C-Suite reporting, and business management.

Sustainability consultancies differ in expertise, approach, and cost. Evaluate potential partners based on your needs, focusing on:

  • Industry experience
  • Client case studies
  • Stakeholder engagement strategies
  • Ways of working
  • Data and reporting methods
  • Project management and communication
  • Fees and scope of work

The key advantages of working with ESG experts are:

  • Broad expertise

A team of consultants brings diverse knowledge across sustainability areas, from strategy and reporting to supply chain, product innovation, and carbon accounting.

  • Integrated collaboration

Embedded teams foster cross-departmental alignment, driving cultural change, operational efficiency, and authentic sustainability messaging.

  • Scalable solutions

Resources are flexed to fit your needs, whether supporting major projects or ongoing guidance without full-time hire costs.

  • Faster results

Hands-on support accelerates initiatives, delivering tangible outcomes like reduced emissions, increased efficiency, and enhanced brand reputation.

To find a fractional CSO, start by defining your sustainability leadership needs and identifying where expertise can deliver the most impact for example, advising the CEO, supporting key leaders, or filling technical gaps.

Contact Third Partners to seamlessly integrate a fractional CSO into your organization to create strategies that drive growth and sustainability.

Contact Third Partners today to optimize your company’s policies, procedures, and structure for long-term ESG and sustainability goals.

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Additional Advisory Services

Materiality Assessment

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Internal Alignment

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Competitive Benchmarking

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Action Plans

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