Transcendent and Ontier launch the first Impact Observatory in Spain

Transcendent, a strategic sustainability and impact consultant, together with the law firm Ontier, have created the Impact Observatory, a meeting space where companies can learn about new initiatives in the areas of impact measurement and management, sustainable finance and regulation.

This initiative comes at a key moment when, both in Europe and in the US, regulatory requirements for sustainability are increasing.

Companies, driven by this regulation and the opportunity it represents for their reputation, together with the possibilities of more attractive financing, seek to balance their economic benefit with the social and environmental impact they generate, in a society that is increasingly aware of environmental effects, such as the risks of climate change, or social risks, such as talent, training and employability policies of companies.

The Observatory wants to be a place where companies committed and responsible for generating a positive impact can learn about and access the latest trends regarding opportunities and challenges in this area. An example of this is the Impact Weighted Accounts Initiative, a Harvard University project that monetizes the impact generated by business activity, both the cost generated by its negative externalities, such as its carbon footprint, and the income generated by excess income due to its positive externalities, such as its policy of opportunity, talent and gender diversity for its employees.

Measuring, managing and reporting impact

One of the purposes of the Impact Observatory is to publicize best practices in the measurement, management and reporting of social and environmental impact, a key and complex issue that concerns business leaders.

At the present time, the challenge has ceased to focus on the effort to minimize negative impact, to move on to a new requirement to maximize the positive impact generated by companies, since they are the biggest generators of social and environmental impact, being positive or negative depending on the business activity or sector in which they carry out their activity.

In this path, it is necessary to address a deep and transversal transformation, to define what impact (materiality of the impact), how it will be measured (methodology and KPIs) and the management of that impact to improve it. “You can't manage what you don't measure,” he explains. María Herrero, president of the Impact Observatory and partner of Transcendent.

However, “when we look at the company with a new approach based on impact, opportunities that were previously unknown and went unnoticed come to light that represent an enormous competitive advantage for the company and that it is necessary to empower and make profitable and, on the other hand, there are also risks that, without knowing it, can jeopardize the value of the company and, even worse, its image and reputation”, adds Herrero.

“The role of regulation around ESG issues can be perceived as a higher cost if we only talk about reporting and compliance. However, regulation also promotes the opportunity for funding that, based on social criteria and good governance, is more attractive,” he says Pedro Rodero, vice-president of the Impact Observatory and executive president of Ontier Spain.

Impact Week, with Sir Ronald Cohen in Spain

The first activity of the Impact Observatory will be the celebration of the Impact Week, which will take place in Madrid from 12 to 14 June and will bring together leaders from the business and financial sector on the theme of Impact and Sustainability in Spain and in the world.

The event will feature the exceptional participation of Sir Ronald Cohen, recognized worldwide figure as the father of Impact Investing and founder of Global Steering Group for Impact Investment (an initiative that was born out of the G8 in 2003), among other very important initiatives in terms of impact and social innovation worldwide, such as the first public-private bank in the United Kingdom with a budget of more than 800 million pounds to finance social impact projects.

Sir Ronald Cohen will visit our country, invited by the consultancy firm Transcendent and the law firm Ontier, to promote a movement in which companies play a key role, demonstrating leadership and commitment to a new economic model that generates sustainable and responsible growth without leaving anyone behind.

The time to put Impact on the business map

The idea of sustainable development was born in 1987 at United Nations headquarters with a report “Our Common Future” that defined for the first time this concept as “development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”. Since then, the idea of fair and responsible sustainable development without leaving anyone behind has grown to such an extent that there is no board of directors that does not have sustainability and impact as strategic axes in its business model.

Moreover, companies have begun to understand that the social and environmental aspects of their economic activity are under the scrutiny of consumers, suppliers, investors and regulators, who drive business policies towards triple economic-social and environmental profitability and demand an increasing commitment in their business strategy to these factors.

“The Impact Observatory was created with the mission of boosting the impact on the business strategy of companies, at a time when investment and financial returns take on a new meaning, that of measurable positive impact for society and the planet,” he says Ángel Pérez Agenjo, Managing Partner of Transcendent.

This change of model is reflected in a greater recognition of companies that meet ESG criteria, promote the creation of long-term value and prioritize economic activities that optimize profitability, social and environmental impact, sustainable growth driven by new technologies and a more responsible social awareness, rather than mere financial return exclusively in the short term.

In this regard, the opportunity for attractive funding based on ESG criteria is clear. The global volume of ESG investment has reached 35 trillion dollars. On the other hand, impact investment (that aimed at contributing to a social challenge not addressed by the conventional market) has grown exponentially, doubling annually since 2016. In 2007, this impact investment reached 230 billion dollars and In 2022 it reached 1.164 trillion dollars, according to the latest report of the GIIN (Global Impact Investment Network).

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