Environmental, Social & Governance Briefs

In 2015, Pearson launched the “Every Child Learning” partnership with Save the Children to deliver high-quality education to Syrian refugees and vulnerable children in Jordan, and to innovate new solutions that improve the delivery of education in emergency and conflict-affected settings. We are doing this through a combination of program funding, collaborative R&D, and joint advocacy.

Currently senior vice president, corporate secretary, and general counsel of Abercrombie & Fitch Co., Robert Bostrom has spent the past three decades working in the corporate legal field. As part of The Conference Board board member job description series, he shares his perspective on the corporate director's job.

2/3 of CEOs believe that digital transformation is a significant enabler for their sustainability strategy and they actively seek opportunities from digitization to improve sustainability performance and to discover more sustainable business models. The application of digital trans-formation and innovation for new more sustainable business models finds wide acceptance among company leaders. Now is the right time to develop proposals for new products and services and new revenue models.

It’s impossible to avoid the furor surrounding cryptocurrencies these days. Looking beyond the price fluctuations of crypto markets, examining the blockchain infrastructure that supports the currencies is a fascinating exercise. The use of blockchain in companies has some interesting implications for citizenship and philanthropy. Blockchain could add a level of transparency and authenticity to corporate practices and resulting communications that could help to rebuild trust in business.

Insider threats are the unwelcomed gift that keeps on giving. A recent report by the analyst firm Forrester revealed that insiders are responsible for more than half of companies’ data breaches. Companies today more so than ever before need insider threat programs, which involve a combination of people, processes and technologies. So where does the board fit in?

Corporate sustainability reporting—the disclosure of environmental, Social, and governance (ESG) practices—continues to transition from an exercise in transparency to a more targeted and strategic mechanism for companies to engage with stakeholders. Recent analysis by The Conference Board captures trends in the disclosure of environmental and social practices by large public companies around the world.

A recent decision by the Delaware Supreme Court raises a question as to whether a plan limit allowing board discretion to grant awards within general parameters will be sufficient to ensure business judgment deference, rather than an entire fairness review.