Menzies launches ESG consultancy service
Professional services firm Menzies has extended its business advisory service offering to include environmental, social and governance strategy development. The new service is designed to help businesses to become more resilient and sustainable.
Environmental, social and governance (ESG) centricity is playing an increasingly important part in economic and wider societal debates – and consumers are more and more shunning companies with poor ESG track-records. Recent research found that as a result, the global ESG consulting market suggests it will enjoy a double-digit compound annual growth rate until 2027 – hitting $16 billion in revenues before then.
Amid this gold-rush, many consulting and accounting firms have been moving to role out sustainability lines of their own. The latest of these is Menzies, which has launched an ESG consulting service. Led by Richard Singleton, the mid-tier professional services company’s new offering will help clients to become more resilient and sustainable.
Speaking as Head of Finance and Sustainability at Menzies, Singleton commented, “A well-considered ESG strategy has become integral to a business’ success – it's intertwined with their reputation and identity. It’s becoming standard practice for businesses to be asked about their ESG performance when pitching for new business, tendering for contracts or when candidates are applying for jobs – and they have to be able to answer successfully and confidently.”
Menzies is a professional services firm headquartered in Surrey. Founded in 1912, the firm is now one of the UK’s largest regional firms to provide accounting and advisory services to privately owned businesses. It hosts eight offices across London and the South of England, and specialises in servicing clients across the healthcare, hospitality, manufacturing, property, retail, transport and technology sectors.
As well as helping businesses to develop and implement a new ESG strategy, Menzies’ new ESG services team can assess an existing strategy, checking that it is the best approach for their business. Depending on what is found, the firm can help businesses to identify opportunities to improve their ESG performance and capture data to inform their future decisions – something which remains a key challenge to many companies currently struggling to meet their net zero goals.
In particular, early feedback on Menzies’ services suggests that one of the most popular services offered in this area is ‘carbon footprinting’. This involves assessing an organisation’s environmental impact, in order to pinpoint opportunities to reduce carbon emissions. Another aspect of the service looks at social value creation and how it can enhance employee engagement and company culture, helping businesses to become better at attracting and retaining talent.
Singleton added, “Businesses don’t have to face this complex issue alone. Taking steps to introduce an ESG strategy now could help to futureproof a business. Setting achievable and flexible short- and long-term goals and demonstrating how the business is delivering against them will enable the business to further its growth plans, whilst cultivating a happy and engaged workforce.”
The news comes after a number of other consulting firms have launched or strengthened their ESG offerings. Earlier in May, sustainability group Anthesis launched the Anthesis Impact Tracker, aiming to help local authorities to accelerate climate action through enhanced monitoring, reporting, and decision-making. Meanwhile, senior professional Trevor Hutchings joined international consultancy BIP as a Partner in the firm’s sustainability team, working to improve the ESG performance of clients.
