🏠︎ | Past Sessions | From ESG to Sustainable Finance Embedding Purpose in Financial Strategy
- Event: Finance Forum 25
- Date: 7 October 2025
- Speakers
- Brian Kenny, Chief Financial Officer and Non Executive Director, Private Equity
- Victoria Gillespie FCCA, Head of Sustainability Solutions, Alter Domus
- Mike Batley, Senior Manager, Systemiq
- Beth Adamson, Finance Director, Elbow Beach
- Estimated read time: 7-8 minutes
Quick read summary
This session explored how finance leaders are moving beyond ESG reporting towards sustainable finance as an embedded part of strategy.
The panel argued that ESG as a standalone exercise is losing credibility when it sits outside core financial decision making. Sustainable finance, by contrast, links capital allocation, risk management and long term value creation to measurable outcomes.
The discussion focused on the CFO’s role in translating purpose into strategy, using data, governance and incentives to align sustainability with commercial performance rather than treating it as a compliance add on.
ESG is no longer enough on its own
The panel opened with a clear distinction. ESG reporting has raised awareness and created a common language, but on its own it does not change how decisions are made. When sustainability sits in a parallel track, disconnected from investment choices and performance metrics, it struggles to influence behaviour.
Brian Kenny framed this as a strategic risk. Boards are increasingly sceptical of sustainability narratives that cannot be traced back to financial outcomes, capital discipline or operational trade offs. For finance leaders, the challenge is not whether ESG matters, but whether it is embedded where value is actually created.
This is where the shift to sustainable finance becomes material. Instead of reporting after the fact, finance helps shape decisions upstream.
Sustainable finance as a decision making framework
Sustainable finance was consistently described as an operating model rather than a reporting layer. It brings environmental and social considerations into the same conversations as return, risk and resilience.
Victoria Gillespie emphasised that this requires clarity on materiality. Not every sustainability issue is financially relevant to every business. The role of finance is to identify which factors genuinely affect long term value and ensure they are reflected in investment cases, pricing decisions and performance evaluation.
The panel stressed that this is not about adding complexity. It is about improving decision quality by recognising risks and opportunities that traditional financial models may overlook.
Data quality and credibility matter more than ambition
Several speakers highlighted the danger of weak data. Sustainability claims lose credibility quickly if they cannot be supported by consistent, auditable information.
Mike Batley spoke about the importance of aligning sustainability data with existing financial systems rather than creating parallel reporting structures. When sustainability metrics are disconnected from core finance data, they are harder to trust and easier to ignore.
This creates a practical priority for CFOs. Before scaling ambition, ensure the data foundations are solid. That includes clear definitions, ownership, controls and a realistic view of data maturity.
Incentives drive behaviour, not statements
A recurring theme was incentives. Purpose statements do not change behaviour unless they are reflected in targets, remuneration and accountability.
Beth Adamson described how sustainable finance becomes real when it influences capital allocation and portfolio decisions. In investment contexts, that means understanding how sustainability factors affect risk, exit value and long term growth, not treating them as a separate screening exercise.
The panel agreed that finance leaders are well placed to design incentives that balance financial performance with sustainability outcomes, provided those outcomes are clearly defined and measurable.
Governance and board engagement are critical
The discussion returned repeatedly to the boardroom. Sustainable finance requires active board engagement, not passive endorsement.
Brian Kenny noted that boards look to finance for translation. Sustainability teams may bring expertise, but CFOs connect that expertise to strategy, risk appetite and financial trade offs. Without that translation, sustainability struggles to influence board decisions.
Effective governance was described as iterative. Boards do not need perfect answers immediately, but they do need a clear line of sight between sustainability priorities and strategic choices.
“If it does not change a decision, it is just reporting.” Brian Kenny, Chief Financial Officer and Non Executive Director, Private Equity
The CFO’s role as integrator, not owner
The panel was clear that sustainable finance is not something finance should own in isolation. The CFO’s role is to integrate, connect and challenge.
That means working closely with sustainability, operations, risk and commercial teams to ensure sustainability considerations are embedded consistently. It also means being willing to ask difficult questions when ambition runs ahead of execution or data quality.
Victoria Gillespie highlighted that this integrator role is becoming a core leadership capability for senior finance leaders, particularly in regulated and investor facing environments.
What good looks like in practice
Across the discussion, a picture emerged of what effective sustainable finance looks like inside an organisation.
It is visible in investment cases that explicitly address sustainability risks and opportunities. It shows up in KPIs that combine financial and non financial measures. It is supported by data that finance teams trust and understand.
Most importantly, it influences real decisions, not just disclosures.
What finance leaders can do now
Questions to ask this quarter
- Which sustainability factors genuinely affect our long term value creation
- Where do sustainability considerations already influence capital allocation decisions
- Which metrics are decision critical, and which are only descriptive
- How confident are we in the quality and consistency of our sustainability data
- Do incentives reinforce or undermine our stated sustainability priorities
- Whether sustainability features in investment committee discussions
- Whether boards ask for trade offs, not just targets
- Whether sustainability data is reviewed alongside financial performance
- Whether teams understand how sustainability affects their decisions
- Whether reporting is driving action or simply fulfilling requirements
- Treating ESG as a parallel reporting exercise
- Expanding metrics before fixing data foundations
- Setting targets without linking them to incentives
- Assuming sustainability teams can influence strategy without finance involvement
- Over promising outcomes that cannot be measured or governed
What good looks like
A finance function that embeds sustainable finance helps the business make better decisions. It uses credible data, aligns incentives and governance, and ensures purpose is reflected in how capital is allocated and risks are managed.
Conclusion, from compliance to strategic advantage
The panel’s core message was that the shift from ESG to sustainable finance is already underway. For CFOs, the opportunity is to lead that shift by embedding purpose into financial strategy, not by owning sustainability, but by making it decision relevant.
When sustainability influences how money is invested, risks are priced and performance is measured, it moves from aspiration to advantage.
Key takeaways
- ESG reporting alone does not change decisions
- Sustainable finance integrates purpose into capital allocation and strategy
- Data quality underpins credibility and influence
- Incentives and governance determine whether sustainability matters in practice
- CFOs play a critical role as integrators between sustainability and strategy
Speakers
Chief Financial Officer and Non Executive Director, Private Equity, experienced finance leader focused on business transformation, governance and data driven decision making.
Head of Sustainability Solutions, Alter Domus, seasoned financial services professional specialising in regulatory aligned sustainability solutions.
Senior Manager, Systemiq, adviser on sustainable finance, decarbonisation and systems change across global markets.
Finance Director, Elbow Beach, finance leader with experience across private equity, fund management and sustainable scaling of businesses.