Systemic inequality is a source of risk that limits productivity and has the potential to constrain consumer spending and growth, destabilize supply chains, trigger political instability, and jeopardize social license to operate.

An increasingly unstable economic environment, along with severe climate events is fueling political and social unrest, creating a vicious cycle of growing inequality and deteriorating social cohesion. While the ‘S’ in ESG is critical to ensuring a fair and equitable world, it is also a business opportunity to make things right.

Corporate adherence to ESG principles has become a legal imperative and stakeholders are demanding more transparency and accountability. Companies that meet rising social expectations can attract and retain talent, generate business opportunities and improve their reputations — while those who fail to adapt may struggle to compete.

Considerations for your leadership team

How are we fostering a diverse, equitable and inclusive (DEI) workplace that not only adheres to legal requirements but also promotes innovation, employee satisfaction, and a positive corporate culture?
How are we enhancing diversity at leadership levels, ensuring representation from different backgrounds and perspectives that can drive better decision-making?
How are we prioritizing the physical and mental well-being of our employees, ensuring a safe and supportive work environment that boosts productivity?
Are we ensuring that our workforce enjoys fair wages, decent working hours, and respects labour rights, promoting ethical practices and responsible corporate behaviour?
How are we actively engaging with Indigenous communities, understanding their perspectives, and taking meaningful steps to support and advance reconciliation, promote economic empowerment, and build long-lasting relationships based on trust and mutual respect?
Are we rigorously auditing our supply chain to verify that our suppliers uphold ethical labour practices and human rights in compliance with our corporate values and federal legislation?
What metrics are we tracking to quantitatively measure our social impact, ensuring that our "S" initiatives result in meaningful contributions to society?
Are we leveraging data and technology to track, measure, and continually optimize our social initiatives?

Find out how KPMG's expertise can help you and your company

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How we can help

At KPMG, we understand the linkages between the social, environmental and governance pillars of ESG, and cross functional team of professionals can help you connect the dots to help ensure your business is fair, inclusive and sustainable — supporting your company through a rapidly changing social landscape to better serve customers, clients, and the communities in which we live.

Addressing health inequality: Leveraging data analytics to explore health inequalities and their social determinants. Our data solutions provide insightful maps of essential health factors, helping organizations understand and address health equity gaps. We also offer global solutions like innovative funding models to enhance access and infrastructure for health services.
Fostering decent work and inclusive growth: Empowering workforce transformation with a lens of social equity. Our holistic approach covers strategy, planning, and workforce shaping, ensuring social equity considerations are integrated at every transformation stage. This strategic alignment promotes inclusivity, growth, and a positive impact on your organization's culture.
Advancing diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI): Seamlessly integrate DEI into overarching business strategy. Our tailored proposition meets organization where they are and guides their progress. From leadership alignment and culture building to equitable recruitment and career pathways, we offer comprehensive solutions. Our suite of solutions (including KPMG Inclusion IQ™ 2.0, DEI Impact Analytics Accelerator and DEI Talent 4.0 Playbook) also help provide precise measurement, reporting, and assurance on the "S" in ESG, covering metrics like pay equity, gender parity, inclusion, contribution to society, and social impact analysis.
Enabling respect for human rights: Enhancing organizations’ response to human rights violations and align to international best practice for defining, operationalizing, and reporting on policy commitments, compliance with expanding modern slavery legislation (e.g., Canada’s Fighting Against Forced Labour and Child Labour in Supply Chains Act), and managed remediation of human rights impacts.

Improving Human Capital Management (HCM): Offering support to organizations to manage employment risks, overcome workplace issues, and design policies that ensure successful employment relationships. This involves helping to address compliance with employment, labour and human rights law: health and safety; pay equity and modern slavery.
Indigenous services: Serving the unique needs of Indigenous organizations, communities and cultures across Canada. Building relationships between business, educational institutions, government entities and healthcare partners to support reconciliation and achieve successful outcomes.
Human and social services: Supporting government-funded services that are dedicated to enhancing economic and social well-being by helping Canadians lead more stable and self-sufficient lives.
Accessibility services: Helping organizations prevent, identify and remove barriers to accessibility including the built environment; information and communication technologies; employment; and service delivery.
Change management services: Supporting organizations in driving adoption of ESG practices and strategies across the workforce using behavioural change management techniques, to make a long-lasting impact.
Empowering supplier diversity: Supporting organizations as they develop, scale and deliver on their supplier diversity strategy; meet stakeholder expectations and regulations; manage diverse spending; and match supply and demand.