Sustainable investing isn’t a passing fad. It’s here to stay. In the first of a regular series, we take a look at the launch of the S&P 500 ESG Index. It’s finally happened. S&P Dow Jones Indices has launched the long-awaited S&P 500 environmental, social and governance (ESG) index. Crucially, it includes an ESG score to select companies for inclusion in the new index (or, to put it another way, weed out the bad apples from the existing S&P 500 index)...

Public spaces are an essential part of a city’s infrastructure and, as we try to make cities more sustainable and liveable, green spaces can be part of the solution. To make the case, speakers from Sejong, Stockholm, Brussels and Barcelona will talk about green districts, open space, smart management systems of green infrastructure, policy framework and performance measurement in cities. Moderated by Tim Smedley.

With the UN Conference on Climate Change (COP) in Paris just days away, a global strategy for reducing carbon emissions is tantalisingly close. Current commitments on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions are due to run out in 2020 and governments are convening in Paris to agree a roadmap for what happens in the next decade and beyond. For any such agreement to work, however, it must include a transition from high-carbon, fossil-fuelled energy production, to one where power comes from clean, renewable

For a nation with only 9.5 million people, Sweden punches above its weight on the international stage. Its social democratic model of free education, high pay and high taxes is famous the world over. Sweden also ranks second (behind Canada) in the Reputation Institute’s 2013 global rankings, which measure international perceptions of the country’s economy, environment and government. This is no doubt bolstered by people’s image of the country with its beautiful landscapes, its high standards of living and the fact that it is home to globally recognised businesses and iconic brands such as ABB, IKEA, Volvo, Ericsson, H&M and Sandvik to name just a few...

A smart city, in combination with smart mobility, offers residents, visitors and stakeholders a quality of life and an ease of experience that pre-emptively addresses their needs, desires and transport requirements. Smart cities are adept at continual reinvention. While not forgetting their history, truly progressive cities allow for new experiences, new infrastructure, new ways of interacting with one’s environment. It’s an enticing proposition with enormous potential – both social and economic. A book by Lukas Neckermann with Tim Smedley.

These are worrying times for employee engagement. The latest academic literature makes for depressing reading. Gallup’s State of the Global Workplace study finds that only 13% of employees are engaged at work...

Virtually all new cars sold by 2020 will have the sort of advanced driver assistance systems that allow for full-autonomous driving on highways (and highly-supported driving in cities). By 2020, Uber, Google and Apple will have launched their electric, fully autonomous fleets. Road platoons of driverless trucks will leave the port of Rotterdam across Europe. The world of mobility is undergoing a vast transformation. This book - written by automotive industry expert Lukas Neckermann, co-authored by Tim Smedley - highlights the changes inherent in the mobility revolution, and how corporate and commercial users are playing a key role in supporting a breakthrough by 2020.

Human Resources are strategically well positioned to manage talent, nurture cultures and develop leadership capabilities that promote innovation. To learn more about how this could be done, CorporateLeaders in partnership with the Center for Creative Leadership, recently hosted a roundtable meeting on ‘Leadership for Business Success: Creating a culture that drives performance and innovation’. Held in Munich, with representatives from leading global and national companies, the agenda included what could be learned from ‘best in class’ companies for leadership development, how companies can transform their business culture to drive innovation, and how HR is supporting the CEO’s vision...

Palm oil is the most-used vegetable oil in the world, accounting for some 65% of all vegetable oil traded, and is found in everything from washing powder to breakfast cereals. Global production has doubled over the past decade and is set to double again by 2020. But oil palm trees only grow in tropical areas, and vast monocrops are rapidly destroying virgin rainforests and peatland. Ecosystem collapse, air pollution and species extinction have followed. Global action to reverse these trends ha

As recently as 2001 there were only 400,000 workers aged over 65 within the UK workforce. Back then all the talk was of high potentials and fast-track graduate schemes. Yet in June this year, the Financial Times reported that the number of over 65s in work had increased to one million, more than doubling in just 10 years. By 2050 there will be 19 million over 65s in the UK population, and with no default retirement age a significant proportion of them will be in work. Therefore, UK plc needs to get to grips with how to manage, motivate and reward older workers, and it needs to do so fast. At our recent engagement network event ‘Engaging workers across generations’, Yves Duhaldeborde presented recent trends in employee attitudes...

Are current leadership development practices helping or hindering the culture necessary to support innovation? Now that organisations across all sectors face multiple challenges, threats and opportunities, it is only the agile that survive. CorporateLeaders in partnership with the Center for Creative Leadership, hosted the second in its ‘Leadership for Business Success’ series of European Executive Briefings. The Paris event was attended by senior HR executives from global companies to explore how to meet the challenging requirements of business leaders and foster a culture of innovation...