PV Mohan CEO Kirby India “With fast-changing times, companies are more accountable to all the stakeholders and need to be fair with everyone on board as they have different responsibilities towards all the stakeholders. At last, companies need to be responsible for governance in all aspects.” — PV Mohan The early 1990s witnessed the Indian economy emerge on the global front due to liberalisation, privatisation and globalisation. India for the first time started dealing with the world economy in different areas of trade such as capital, product, labour, and more. This ultimately led to a whole new wave of changes resulting in the beginning of new corporate culture, processes and products as per global standards, and business ethics as these were important for the Indian economy to flourish in the world marketplace. Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) started emerging from 2010 onwards and has gained prominence over the last five years as compared to earlier years, mainly 2010s, where Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) played a key role. Integration of ESG principles by corporates further enhance business sustainability by safeguarding the environment, society, and the interests of various stakeholders. ESG framework assesses a company's behaviour concerning environmental performance, social impact and governance issues. More resources are being allocated by various companies across industries and geographies. Towards improving ESG: this is evident from increasing investments in sustainable developments as ESG is steadily moving towards the mainstream by gaining support and traction from all corners. At Kirby Building Systems and Structures India (Kirby India), ESG is of prime importance and focuses on three core essentials – people, process and product. It determines the company’s long-term strategy and its impact on all the stakeholders – employees, customers, vendors, channel partners and society in general. As a company, we regularly evaluate our business practices and the benefits arising from the same and stand by them to comply with ESG norms. Environmental is the most talked about as it can be easily tracked and measured but not accurately to understand its impact. Some of the key areas that are measurable include energy consumption, rainwater harvesting and water usage. Usage of environmentally-friendly materials and sustainable and green initiatives enables us to further contribute to a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions. Sustainable practices have enabled us to build a positive reputation and develop a loyal set of customer base over the last 22 years of operations in India. Kirby’s Pre-Engineered Steel Buildings (PEB) are eco-friendly, green and sustainable in nature, which is not only good for the plant but also good for the business. These buildings are more than 70 per cent recyclable with no consumption of water and sand, and are manufactured at the factory and erected on-site using simple nut-bolt connections. PEBs also qualify under the green buildings category as they are making inroads across all types of construction. We are supplying and constructing these buildings over the last two decades thereby contributing to the green building movement. These buildings are energy efficient and are cooler in hot conditions due to the favourable roofing material, insulation and natural ventilation. The use of skylights and solar panels mounted on rooftops of industrial buildings also meet daylight and captive power requirements and at the same time reduces emissions. Effective usage of insulation, louvers and other materials also helps in temperature control and rainwater harvesting. The social pillar is the one where all the stakeholders are involved both directly and indirectly. We work closely with all our employees, vendors and customers including channel partners and workmen at various job sites and stand with them in the toughest of times. This is in line with the core values of our organisation where all are given equal importance without any differentiation. We cater to all types of customers right from small entrepreneurs to the largest corporates thereby ensuring that our product is accessible without any bias. These buildings supplied by us across India are directly and indirectly generating employment and thereby giving a boost to the local economy and improving their living standards. Governance is important as it defines how the companies are directed and controlled, and how practices such as anti-corruption and anti-competitiveness, including ethics, values, principles, and morals are followed. It further defines the roles and responsibilities among different stakeholders, policies and procedures for making decisions. Some of the practices such as integrity, trust, and straight talk, are good governance practices, which are regularly followed in our company. This has enabled us to improve our relationships with employees, customers, and other stakeholders. We treat all our employees and workmen as our core assets and provide them with regular training for skill upgradation as per the latest market trends. This has been a key to our success and leadership position for the last two decades in India. With fast-changing times, companies are more accountable to all the stakeholders and need to be fair with everyone on board as they have different responsibilities towards all the stakeholders. At last, companies need to be responsible for governance in all aspects. More companies are investing in ESG for the integration of data and decision-making. Accordingly, ESG measurements are also steadily improving, which is still a work in progress and there will be more advancements going forward. As long as the tenet or proposition behind ESG remains in focus, this will definitely deliver meaningful impact in the long term. Kirby India is committed to providing innovative and prompt service to all its customers and becoming a reliable business partner in their journey of growth. We hope to prosper in the market by reinforcing the strengths, overcoming the weaknesses and then implementing them in the most efficient way across all the areas. About the author PV Mohan, CEO, Kirby India, has an experience of more than 32 years in the field of supply chain, operation excellence, purchase and sales. He joined Kirby India in 2005 as General Manager-Supply Chain and has also served as Project Director-SAP and Director-Purchase. Corporate Sustainability Practices Manish Beriwala elaborates on the company's vision and the need for the Centre to frame a National Plan on ESG. Manish Beriwala Director Shyam Steel Industries