An argument for progress over perfection
By Aislín Johnston
There’s no shortage of noise around ESG. Everyone’s talking targets, transparency, and triple bottom lines, but few are confronting that complexity head on. The truth is that many organisations have no idea where to start with such a complex undertaking, and many are resorting to calculated improvisation. ESG might be high on the agenda, but that doesn’t mean that best practice has been established, or that businesses even have a clear idea of what it should look like.
Once an afterthought, ESG has rapidly evolved into a business imperative. It has the power to influence investment decisions, drive consumer behaviour, and increasingly determines how businesses are perceived. But these expectations have wildly outpaced clarity, running miles ahead of the reality on the ground. Reporting frameworks are, at best, fragmented, and standards vary between markets, sectors, regulators, and geographical locations. The result is that many businesses are being asked to deliver robust ESG strategies without the infrastructure, expertise, or consistency to back it up.
That’s where maturity models come in. They offer a practical lens on how ESG is currently functioning inside your organisation and where you can improve.
We’re All Playing Catch-Up
In 2025, ESG isn’t a clickbait-oriented brand initiative. It’s a strategic, operational, and reputational concern that impinges on all departments, from finance and legal to HR and procurement. From the outside looking in, strong ESG credentials now correlate directly with performance. As McKinsey outlines, ESG integration can drive everything from cost reduction and employee engagement to capital optimisation and growth potential, so it’s in everyone’s best interest to ensure that it is as healthy as possible.
The tension is that, while ESG’s importance is clear, implementation remains a messy and somewhat convoluted process. Financial reporting benefits from over a century of global standardisation. ESG reporting does not. Most organisations are still navigating a patchwork of disclosure frameworks, evolving regulatory guidance, and shifting stakeholder expectations.
The result? Many are stuck in reactive mode, trying to demonstrate progress without the systems, data quality, or internal ownership to support it confidently.
ESG Maturity Models Range from Embryonic to Embedded
The maturity conversation matters. Because without a framework, ESG too often floats above the day-to-day, disconnected from budget, operations, and accountability reporting.
Models like CohnReznick’s or PwC’s help businesses situate themselves on a realistic curve spanning from beginner, intermediate, advanced, and leadership. PwC even personifies each stage, from the ESG Outsider (uninvolved) to the ESG Leader (embedded and proactive). These aren’t vanity labels; they’re a way of mapping intention to action.
A business early in its ESG journey might be gathering baseline data, building literacy, and assigning internal responsibility. One further along may be integrating ESG into capital allocation, supply chain design, and incentive structures.
There’s no shame in being at the beginning, but there’s risk in pretending you’re not.
Goal-Setting > Greenwashing
As more and more companies are exposed for ethically dubious sustainability initiatives, polished statements and glossy impact reports don’t land like they used to. Stakeholders, especially investors, employees, and regulators, want to know the specifics behind the statements. ESG credibility now rests on clarity, consistency, and context.
That means your strategy needs to be more than a mission statement. It needs measurable goals that make sense for your industry, your size, your stage, and your stakeholders. That includes hard data:
- energy use
- board composition
- wage equity,
And softer signals, such as:
- employee experience
- community trust
- supplier ethics
As BSR puts it, this next chapter of ESG isn’t about doing the minimum. It’s about building the internal alignment, governance, and accountability needed to support real-world outcomes, and avoiding the long-term reputational damage that follows when you overpromise and underdeliver.
When done well, ESG creates a ripple effect that touches every part of the organisation.
- Consumer brands with strong environmental commitments like Unilever and Patagonia consistently rank high in customer loyalty and employee engagement.
- Financial services firms with robust governance and ethical sourcing frameworks are seeing improved access to capital and stronger risk ratings.
- Tech companies that prioritise diversity, equity, and inclusion have been shown to outperform on innovation and product development.
In all these cases, ESG is not just a reputational asset – it directly supports growth, retention, and resilience.
When handled poorly, the fallout can be immediate and far-reaching.
- In 2023, fast fashion giants faced major consumer backlash, and investor pullback, over greenwashing claims and exploitative labour practices.
- Energy and resource firms with inadequate climate risk disclosures are now facing limited access to ESG-aligned investment funds.
- Companies overstating social impact metrics have found themselves under regulatory investigation or media scrutiny, eroding public trust overnight.
Compliance is the Floor, Not the Ceiling
Regulation is evolving fast. The EU’s Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), as well as similar entities in the US and APAC, are cracking down on businesses who are failing to stay abreast of the need for sustainable practices. Having said that, for most stakeholders and investors, “Do No Significant Harm (DNSH)” compliance is just the bare minimum. They want to see assertive action for the benefit of the workforce, long term health of the organisation, and the planet.
What sets ESG-mature organisations apart is how far they go beyond what’s required. Instead of waiting for mandatory rules to dictate their priorities, they build internal ESG infrastructures that can expand with changing standards and withstand scrutiny in real time. It tells stakeholders you understand ESG not as a reputational shield, but as a core element of long-term performance, resilience, and risk management.
The Three P’s: Infinite Possibilities
At the heart of ESG sit three ideas: people, planet, and profit. That framing hasn’t changed. (some now argue for adding two more: purpose and performance) What has changed is the level of nuance and interconnectedness required to make them work together effectively.
These are not separate tracks. Environmental decisions impact workforce wellbeing. Social performance affects access to capital, and governance shapes both. ESG works best when viewed holistically rather than in silos.
McKinsey’s “Making ESG Real” report makes it clear: to drive genuine value, ESG strategy must be “tightly linked with a company’s overall purpose, priorities, and operating model.” Anything else is ornamental.
Moving Forward, What Does ‘Better’ Look Like?
The ESG journey doesn’t need to be overwhelming, but it does need to be intentional.
Start with where you are. Use a maturity model to assess what’s working and where the gaps lie. Then decide what progress looks like in the context of your own business: your culture, your industry, your goals.
You don’t need a masterpiece overnight. But you do need motion, and a strategy that’s flexible enough to adapt to change.
ESG Transformation with Chesamel
Chesamel is more than a consultancy; we’re your partner in transformation.
From stakeholder engagement to strategic goal-setting, we support clients across the full ESG maturity curve, helping you turn ambition into outcomes that matter.If you’re ready to move from intention to implementation, let’s have a conversation.
