Chief executives around the world increasingly believe that they have a strategic rationale for taking on environmental, social, and governance¹ issues. However, they also understand the challenges that must be overcome when they do—challenges that include the difficulty of managing supply chains across countries with different regulations and norms for corporate social responsibility.²

According to our survey³ of CEOs at companies participating in the United Nations Global Compact,⁴ more than 90 percent of them are doing more than they did five years ago to incorporate environmental, social, and governance issues into their core strategies. Our research⁵ shows that while pressure from employees, consumers, and other stakeholders plays an important part in this trend, some CEOs see the new demands as opportunities to gain a competitive advantage and to address global problems at the same time.