The Challenge
Our client is an American energy provider that prioritizes sustainability and puts clean, reliable energy for customers at the hearts of its business. Working to meet rigorous social, environmental, and accountability standards, the company is committed to being carbon free by 2023 and source energy from 100% renewable sources by 2030.
With these ambitions in mind, this transformative company reached out to ADEC ESG Solutions for support on ESG outreach and education. Its goal was to better understand customer views on ESG topics and provide both internal and external stakeholders with the knowledge they need to make more sustainable choices, leading to measurable improvements.
Our Solution
Understanding customer relationships with sustainability
Work with our client began with an analysis of its customer base. The goal was to provide our client with an understanding of customer values and how those values intersect with ESG drivers. The outcome was a clear path forward for our client—an understanding of how to prioritize its sustainability efforts in a way that aligned with the values, commitments, and goals of its customer base. We also worked with our client to develop an outreach strategy based on this analysis, including communications materials, internal programs, and external engagement. The key was using language and framing that customers could grasp easily, and avoiding industry jargon that is hard to understand or alienating.
Educating internal staff ESG training program
As a next step, our team developed a training program for internal stakeholders, equipping client staff with the institutional ESG knowledge they needed to continue to drive internal ESG programs forward. We worked closely with the client team to integrate company culture, vision, and current initiatives into the training program. Workshops also prepared staff to engage and educate customers on the benefits and drivers for energy transformation projects.
Continued progress
In 2023, our work with the company expanded to include greenhouse gas emissions plan management, including a GHG inventory covering scopes 1 and 2. We are also working with our client to explore the feasibility of committing to and reducing emissions in accordance with the Science Based Targets initiative’s sectoral decarbonization approach (SDA) guidelines for the power sector. Science-based targets have recently grown in popularity as a way for companies to demonstrate commitment to reducing global emissions and mitigating the impacts of climate change. The SDA guidelines are specifically developed at a subsector level to help companies within energy-intensive industries align their emissions reduction targets with global 2°C goals.
Results and Deliverables
- Customer value analysis based on ESG drivers
- Customer outreach strategy and program development support
- Internal ESG training workshops
