Annual report from KPMG Private Enterprise and the STEP Project Global Consortium highlights how family businesses have made sustainability an integral component within their business model, with 43 percent of the survey respondents reporting high levels of performance on the sustainability index.
Dubai, UAE, 08 June 2023 – A Global Family Business Report from KPMG Private Enterprise and the STEP Project Global Consortium reveals how business families are great sustainability ambassadors, demonstrating how to embed best practices, create shared value, gain a competitive advantage and achieve long-term growth.
“A road well-traveled – How family businesses are guiding the sustainability journey” brings together personal insights from the sustainability experiences of top family business leaders combined with sustainability performance data gathered from 2,439 family businesses across 70 countries and territories. The report which uses both qualitative and quantitative research, cites a multi-generational commitment to create value for all stakeholders as one of the underlying reasons enabling family businesses to excel as sustainability leaders, reflecting an important shift in mindset away from considering sustainability measures an additional cost of business, but an essential investment in the future.
The report positions sustainability as a familiar concept within business families and an important part of the family legacy, a claim supported with key analysis across varying jurisdictions and sectors that reveal just how embedded sustainability practices have become in family values and business models. Investing in sustainability and operating in a sustainable way is not only viewed as the ‘right thing to do’, but it’s also becoming an essential engine and catalyst for company growth.
Raajeev B Batra, Partner and Head of Private Enterprise, KPMG Lower Gulf, said: “The UAE’s family businesses have displayed a commitment to communities, and now is the time for them to make sustainability performance a part of responsible business practices, aligned with the government’s vision. UAE family businesses that deliver on their sustainability goals are more likely to see their reputations enhanced, attract, and retain top talent and generate new business opportunities.
Tom McGinness, Global Leader, Family Business, KPMG Private Enterprise, KPMG International, says: “I truly believe that family businesses that successfully engage with all their stakeholders on this sustainability journey will not only survive but prosper. Those that don't step up are likely to be left behind and the choice for companies may be that binary. Family businesses have prospered based on core sustainability principles across several generations, and there are many lessons that everyone can take away from their experiences.”
The report concludes that no-one can solve the world’s biggest environmental and societal issues alone and considers the time to be apt for companies across the world to tap into the experiences and know-how of business families, and to do what’s right for generations to come by making sustainability strategies their ‘business as usual’.
ENDS
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About the STEP Project Global Consortium
The STEP Project Global Consortium is a global applied research initiative that explores family and business practices within business families and generates solutions that have immediate application for family business leaders. STEP aims to be a leading global family business research project with an international reputation. The research insights are specifically drawn to be of relevance to developing new theoretical insights that can offer novel and valuable best practices recommendations to the business stakeholders and the practice community at large. Having a global worldwide orientation, STEP offers networking opportunities for researchers, family business owners and consultants coming from five continents.
Visit: thestepproject.org
About the KPMG Private Enterprise Global Family Business Network
As with your family, your business doesn’t stand still — it evolves. Family businesses are unique and KPMG Private Enterprise family business advisers understand the dynamics of a successful family business and work with you to provide tailored advice and experienced guidance to help you succeed.
To support the unique needs of family businesses, KPMG Private Enterprise coordinates with KPMG firms from around the world that are dedicated to offering relevant information and advice to family‑owned companies. KPMG Private Enterprise understands that the nature of a family business is inherently different from a non‑family business and requires an approach that considers the family component.
Visit: kpmg.com/familybusiness
About KPMG Private Enterprise
Passion, it’s what drives entrepreneurs, it’s also what inspires KPMG Private Enterprise advisers to help you maximize success. You know KPMG, but you might not know KPMG Private Enterprise. KPMG Private Enterprise advisers in KPMG firms around the world are dedicated to working with you and your business, no matter where you are in your growth journey — whether you’re looking to reach new heights, embrace technology, plan for an exit, or manage the transition of wealth or your business to the next generation. Working with KPMG Private Enterprise, you’ll gain access to a trusted advisor — a single point of contact who shares your entrepreneurial mindset. Access to KPMG’s global resources and alliance network can help you drive your business forward and meet your goals. Your success is KPMG Private Enterprise’s legacy.
Visit: kpmg.com/privateenterprise
About KPMG International Limited
KPMG is a global organization of independent professional services firms providing Audit, Tax and Advisory services. We operate in 147 countries and territories and have more than 219,000 people working in member firms around the world. Each KPMG firm is a legally distinct and separate entity and describes itself as such.
KPMG International Limited is a private English company limited by guarantee. KPMG International Limited and its related entities do not provide services to clients.
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