Avi Kumar and Sveva Munari, Global BBA students at ESSEC Business School, focus on Green Arrow Capital (GAC), an independent financial group specializing in alternative investments across Europe through an interview with Edvige Galeardi, Head of ESG.

Avi Kumar and Sveva Munari are ESSEC Business School Runners Up in the CoBS 2026 Case Development Challenge, part of the Advanced International Certificate in Responsible Business Practices. With kind acknowledgements to Edvige Galeardi and Green Arrow Capital.

Green Arrow Capital represents a one-of-a-kind platform and is mainly composed of investment, asset management, and financial advisory companies. They aim to create a solid financial platform to launch and manage investment funds dedicated to alternatives and to the real economy.

Their key differentiation factors and the values that guide the company’s operations are: Innovation, Reliability, and Sustainability. They have a strong commitment to sustainability, being at the core of their business decisions, and not as a box to be checked.

They demonstrate a strong commitment to Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) principles both at the investment and corporate level. The firm integrates ESG Factors throughout its entire investment cycle, making sure that they are embedded in decision-making, risk management, and portfolio monitoring.

At the organisational level, GAC has an established structural ESG governance system, including an ESG committee, ESG manager, and ESG Champions within each investment team that ensure accountability and consistent implementation of responsible investment practices.

Additionally, the company aligns itself with global sustainability standards as a signatory of the UN Principles for Responsible Investment (UN PRI) and operates as a Benefit Company with a mission to achieve carbon neutrality by 2028, reflecting its long-term commitment to environmental and social impact.

Green Arrow Capital has positioned itself as a driver of sustainable value creation, aiming to create economic as well as social growth by generating financial returns and positive societal impact.

The Challenge

Despite Green Arrow Capital’s strong ESG positioning, it still faced an internal challenge of translating these external commitments into its own operations. Sustainability had been embedded in the firm’s investment strategy, but in 2020, it became clear that it did not fully extend to how the organization functioned daily.

The core difficulty was shifting from ‘doing sustainable investing to being a sustainable organisation’. This required a fundamental transformation, instead of an incremental change. The most important step in this process was the decision to become a benefit company, which changed the company’s legal structure and defined its mission to include environmental and social objectives alongside financial ones.

This transformation was quite complex. It required legal and structural changes, which included having to update the company’s articles of association and aligning governance processes with the new mission. It also created internal resistance and uncertainty, since employees and managers had to adapt to new priorities that were not directly linked to traditional financial performance. For a lot of people, ESG was not seen as a core business activity, making it harder to justify the time and cost required.

Setting commitments is a part of the challenge, but the next step was to operationalize them. Goals such as becoming plastic-free, achieving carbon neutrality by 2028, and improving employee well-being had to be made into measurable actions that could be implemented into everyday business activities.

Strategic Response

In response to this challenge that had been presented to them, GAC focused on building a framework that could help them achieve the goals they had set while still being realistic and measurable.

One of the main changes was the transition towards becoming a plastic-free organisation across all its offices. This included small shifts such as replacing plastic business cards with bamboo alternatives and eliminating single-use plastic in everyday office activities. Even though these changes may seem minor at first, they required employees to adapt their daily habits, which was not always easy, especially in the beginning stages of implementation.

Alongside this, the firm had set a clear target to achieve carbon neutrality by 2028. To reach this goal, one of the main things they had to do was measure their carbon footprint, with particular focus on emissions linked to business travel, which is a major component in the finance industry. Setting the target was relatively straightforward, but tracking and reducing emissions proved to be much more complex and required continuous monitoring and adjustments.

Another important aspect of this approach was the introduction of employee well-being metrics. They implemented regular surveys combining scaled questions and open-ended responses to understand better employee satisfaction, work-life balance, and overall well-being. This data was then used to make gradual improvements, such as introducing more flexible working arrangements.

Finally, these initiatives were supported by the development of internal ESG governance systems. Decisions were not made in isolation but involved coordination between management and the board, ensuring that sustainability goals were aligned with the company’s broader strategy. Over time, ESG considerations also became part of performance evaluations, with a portion of employee compensation linked to achieving these targets, helping reinforce accountability.

Overall, what stands out in Green Arrow Capital’s approach is the shift from broad commitments to structured, measurable actions. While the process is still ongoing, it shows how ESG can move from being a general intention to something that is actively managed and embedded within the organization.

Driving Change: Culture, behaviour, and incentives

While building a structured ESD was an important first step, Green Arrow Capital’s transformation largely depended on its ability to influence culture and employee behaviour.

One of the most visible shifts occurred in everyday behaviours. Employees had become more conscious of resource usage, especially when it came to printing and travel.

Printing-wise, the company introduced systems to track activity, which increased awareness and pushed people to be more responsible with paper. Same with travel, there was a growing shift towards questioning the necessity of business travel. Employees were more frequently opting for virtual meetings instead of traveling to meet in person.

Another development was the movement towards a more flexible working environment. Remote work emerged out of necessity because of the COVID-19 pandemic, but later on, it became a permanent feature of the company’s operations. It supported environmental goals by reducing commuting and travel, but it also improved employee well-being.

Lastly, the company introduced incentive-based mechanisms to reinforce ESG commitments. A portion of employee compensation, around 10%, was linked to the achievement of ESG targets. Even if it’s quite a low percentage, this measure was an important part of aligning individual performance with organizational goals.

Leadership Insight: The role of communication

One of the key takeaways from our conversation with Edwidge was how important communication was in making their ESG transition actually work. While setting targets and building frameworks is possible, their implementation is easier said than done. A plan only works if people are standing behind it. The real challenge, therefore, wasn’t making the changes, but getting people across the organization to understand and engage with those changes.

On an internal level, communication played a key role in building employee engagement. Since many of the initiatives required changes in everyday behaviour, it was not enough to simply introduce new policies. Employees needed to understand why these changes were being made and how they contributed to the company’s broader goals. This was done through the regular feedback mechanisms they had set up, which allowed the employees to share their concerns and suggestions. Over time, this created a sense that ESG was not being imposed from the top down, but it was something employees could actively participate in.

At the same time, communication was equally important externally, particularly in maintaining legitimacy with investors and stakeholders. In the finance industry, ESG commitments are often closely scrutinized, and there is always a risk of being perceived as superficial or performative. By clearly aligning its internal practices with its investment strategy and openly communicating its policies and progress, Green Arrow Capital was able to strengthen its credibility. This was especially relevant given that many investors now expect transparency and concrete action when it comes to sustainability.

Beyond engagement and legitimacy, communication also helped in building a shared ESG vision within the company. One of the key insights from the interview was that even when individuals are already engaging in sustainable behaviours, these efforts can go unnoticed if they are not communicated. By encouraging more open dialogue, the company was able to make these actions visible and reinforce a collective sense of purpose. This helped shift ESG from being seen as an additional responsibility to something more integrated into the company’s identity.

To quote Edwidge, “Communication is key, and without it, even good initiatives fail. You will never have 100% satisfaction, but progress comes from continuous dialogue.”

Outcomes and impact

The implementation of all of these initiatives led to many tangible outcomes that helped strengthen Green Arrow Capital’s responsible business practices.

At an operational level, the company achieved reductions in resource usage, especially in plastic and paper consumption. The shift towards plastic-free offices and monitoring printing helped create more sustainable day-to-day operations. Even if the changes are incremental, they reflect a broader commitment to the company bettering its environmental footprint

One of the most significant outcomes was the increase in awareness and accountability across the organization. They introduced measurement systems, such as carbon tracking and employee well-being surveys, which made ESG more visible and actionable. Employees were encouraged to reflect on their own behaviours and understand how they contribute to the company’s sustainability objectives.

Another outcome was the strengthening of the company’s ESG credibility. It aligned its internal practices and its external investment strategy, which allowed Green Arrow Capital to reinforce its positioning as a genuinely responsible investment firm. It’s quite important in the finance industry, since stakeholders expect consistency between what companies promote and how they operate internally.

Lastly, the process contributed to a shift in organisational mindset. ESG wasn’t perceived as an additional requirement; it was seen as an integral part of the company’s identity and strategy. This shift was less visible than operational changes, but it was critical to ensure that sustainability efforts were maintained and developed over time.

Ongoing Challenges: Scaling ESG in growth

Even though Green Arrow Capital has made clear progress in embedding ESG into its operations, the process is far from complete.

One of the main challenges going forward comes from growth, particularly with the integration of a newly acquired company. While ESG systems are already in place within GAC, applying these same standards to another organization is not automatic. It requires adapting existing processes, aligning different corporate cultures, and making sure that the new employees understand and engage with the same sustainability objectives.

At the same time, growth also puts pressure on the company’s ability to maintain its existing targets, especially the commitment to achieving carbon neutrality by 2028. Expanding operations often means increased emissions, more employees, and more complex activities, which can make sustainability goals harder to reach. As mentioned in the interview, this may even require adjusting timelines or redefining targets depending on how the integration evolves. This shows that ESG commitments, while important, are not always fixed and may need to remain flexible in practice.

More broadly, the case highlights how ESG should be seen as an evolving strategy rather than a one-time initiative. What worked for a smaller organization may not work in the same way as the company grows and changes. New challenges emerge, priorities shift, and systems need to be continuously updated. In this sense, responsible leadership is not just about setting ambitious goals, but about being able to adapt those goals while still staying aligned with the company’s core values.

Redefining responsible leadership

Despite the significant progress made in aligning internal operations with its ESG commitments, Green Arrow’s transformation is continuing. Currently, the key challenge is to ensure that these practices can be effectively scaled as the company grows.

A major development is the integration of a newly acquired company. This presents a new layer of complexity, since the ESG frameworks, systems, and practices have been developed internally and now need to be extended to a larger and more diverse organization.

It also raises questions about the company’s existing targets, such as its commitment to achieving carbon neutrality by 2028. If and as it expands, its overall environmental footprint may increase, making it harder to stay on track. This means that the company may need to reassess its timelines or approach.

This reinforces the argument that the idea of sustainability is not a one-time transformation but a continuous process. As highlighted in the interviews, ESG evolves with the organization.

The next stage for Green Arrow Capital is to ensure consistency and coherence as the company scales.

Download the Green Arrow Capital Responsible Leadership Case Study:

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Useful links:

• Link up with Avi Kumar and Sveva Munari on LinkedIn
• Read a related article: Trends in Green Finance and Investment
• Download this and other case studies in the special issue Global Voice magazine #36
• Discover ESSEC Business School
• Apply for the ESSEC Global BBA.

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