Oakley Capital Sustainability Forum 2023

We were pleased to welcome back leaders from across the Oakley Capital portfolio for our second annual Sustainability Forum. Part of Oakley’s Portfolio Company programme, the Forum provides a platform for our management teams to network and knowledge share in the fast-changing world of ESG regulation and sustainability best-practise. Increasingly, ESG is a value creation tool Oakley is deploying to risk-proof our businesses and help them accelerate growth in a sustainable way, with a focus on measuring and reducing carbon footprints, boosting cyber resilience and increasing employee diversity. Key takeaways from this year’s Forum include: 

The ‘S’ in ESG is increasingly important..

.. as companies recognise how strong, diverse cultures can help businesses recruit and retain the best talent. Helping employees upskill is a key ingredient for London’s leading estate agent, Dexters, whose academy helps prepare new hires for a career in property. Sarah Barrett, Chief People Officer at Dexters, says it’s all about “offering opportunities irrespective of someone’s background or qualifications, in order to build a really diverse workforce that reflects where we live and work, as well as providing brilliant career opportunities.” 

ESG should benefit the end customer

Reducing energy consumption can help you shrink your carbon footprint as well as your business costs. Other efficiencies can help boost profitability and cut prices. Liberty Dental Group CEO Hidde Hoeve says digitisation and AI can help his dental labs to produce crowns and bridges more efficiently and with less wastage: that’s good for both the environment and his customers. “ESG contributes to efficiency and profitability. There’s an opportunity to give something back to the customer if you can work more efficiently- in the end the customer can benefit from these efforts.” 

The power of shared experience

Oakley’s forums provide the opportunity for management teams to share best practise across the portfolio. For Bright Stars Finance Director Sophie Rayner, it’s about “meeting similar minded people across different businesses, especially for us in the education sector to meet other education business and take away ideas we can implement.” Dexters’ Sarah Barrett says “I feel I’m building a great network of contacts I can reach out to if I have a thorny issue or something new our business hasn’t experienced before. It’s going to really expand our understanding and knowledge.” 

Looking ahead to 2024

In 2024 Oakley will be stepping up a gear by setting carbon reduction and employee engagement targets, amongst others.