ESG and Diversity: A Talk on Diversity's Crucial Role in ESG Compliance

Consumers today are more driven than ever to support companies that care about the social and environmental impact of their operations. So, it’s not surprising that ESG compliance has become a hot topic of discussion across many industries.

In the Diversity Team at Sherlock Communications, we started wondering about the role we could play in helping our agency and clients comply with this framework and decided to team up with an expert.

We invited Natália de Campos Tamura, a Communication and Sustainability consultant, professor and researcher to share her insights with our team. She drew on historical references, books, key events, and Public Relations concepts to prompt reflections on the importance of ESG compliance and respect for social diversity in Brazil.

Natália explained the concept of ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) was first used in 2004 in a report published by the UN in conjunction with the World Bank, titled “Who Cares Wins.” The term emerged from a provocation posed by then-UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, who asked CEOs of large financial institutions how they planned to integrate social, environmental, and governance factors into the capital market.

Since then, ESG has become a standard for ideal behavior, encouraging companies to think beyond themselves and to be more responsible when running their businesses, considering their social, environmental, and administrative impact.

To get a better picture of Brazil’s diversity and inclusion landscape, Natália brought up interesting data on gender inequality in the country. For instance, we learned that despite women making up 51% of the population, they typically earn 24% less than men. 

Moreover, Brazil also faces significant challenges regarding racial and LGBTQIA+ inclusion. The expert highlighted that Brazil not only has the highest annual number of LGBTQIA+ murders globally but that in 2021, 66% of the women murdered in the country were black.

These findings showcase that Brazil, despite being rich in cultural diversity, still holds significant prejudice towards certain social groups. This underscores the need for companies to take an active role in advocating for diversity and inclusion within their organizations.

As companies, we have a responsibility to actively promote diversity and inclusion in our workplaces. This includes raising awareness among our staff, showcasing minority leaders, making sure we have diverse representation in our media and communications, and creating job opportunities for underrepresented groups.

But bear in mind that ESG compliance is not achieved with a one-time effort. It’s a commitment to society that requires ongoing efforts to support the environment and all forms of diversity, whether it’s gender, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, physical condition, social class, religion, age, nationality, or other aspects related to minorities and historically disadvantaged groups.

At Sherlock Communications, we believe embracing diversity not only drives innovation, enhances problem-solving, and improves employee engagement and retention, but we are also confident that companies that prioritize diversity are better equipped to understand and cater to a broader customer base, ultimately leading to better financial performance.

With that in mind, at the Diversity and Inclusion team, we’ve implemented several initiatives to promote a more inclusive workplace, such as:

• Conducting regular training sessions and discussions to educate our staff about unconscious biases and the importance of diversity.
• Establishing employee resource groups to support minority groups within our organization and provide valuable networking opportunities.
• Making continuous efforts to hire, include, and support consultants who are Black, LGBTQIAP+, Indigenous, and those with physical and intellectual disabilities from different socioeconomic backgrounds.
• Working closely with NGOs and social projects by providing pro bono communication services.

Take a look at our Corporate Social Responsibility Report to learn more about the steps we are taking to foster an inclusive environment.