Sustainable investing education platform CANDRIAM Academy announced today the launch of a new course focused on the ESG analysis of companies. According to CANDRIAM, the course aims to enable investors to integrate ESG analysis as part of assessing a company’s risk profile, while meeting the challenge presented by the absence of industry standards governing the disclosure of ESG information by companies.

David Czupryna, Head of ESG Development at CANDRIAM, said:

“There is a growing expectation for investors to undertake sound ESG analysis to fully understand a company’s risk profile. Whilst financial information has been subject to mandatory disclosure in a number of markets for some time, the scope of information available to investors for ESG analysis can vary significantly from one company to another. We therefore felt it was important to leverage our own experience in responsible investment to guide investors on the key steps that are required in their own ESG analysis within investment decision making.”

CANDRIAM Academy was founded in 2017 by New York Life affiliate sustainability-focused asset management firm CANDRIAM, aiming to raise the awareness, education and knowledge of institutional investors and financial intermediaries on the topic of sustainable and responsible investing. The new course is the fourth for the free-to-access accredited training platform, adding to existing courses ‘An Introduction to SRI, ‘Circular Economy’ and ‘Climate Change.’

The new one-hour module introduces investors to the key steps required to understand a company’s risk profile, including examining company revenues and spending, assessing how this main activity aligns with sustainability objectives, asking whether the company’s operational conduct presents any scope for future controversies, conducting ongoing analysis, and cross-pollinating ESG data across different functions, including corporate engagement.

Vincent Hamelink, Chief Investment Officer at CANDRIAM, said:

“Our new module provides investors with the essential tools to build a more complete understanding of a company’s ESG risk profile. Its introduction enhances our existing training programme and will further increase the Academy’s role in accelerating the transition to a more sustainable future through encouraging responsible and sustainable investment best practice.”