We worked with Chiesi Farmaceutici on the co-design of a new tool that allows starting from recognized models and tools, for the 360-degree measurement of a project’s impacts on its key stakeholders, identifying its strengths, risks and related mitigation actions and opportunities for improvement, inspired by ESG guidelines, CSRD and relevant reporting standards.
(History of our Interdependence Report 02022, read the full document here)
“We increasingly want to act as a positive force, to promote a conscious and different way of doing business, to contribute to truly sustainable development.”
In 2018, on the occasion of Chiesi Farmaceutici’s transformation into a Benefit Corporation (Società Benefit), Alberto Chiesi, Group Chairman, commented thus, indicating that from then on every investment decision would consider the impact that business decisions generate on people, society and the biosphere, effectively implementing the concept of shared value.
To help honor this commitment during 02022, Chiesi questioned how to include consideration of the impacts of an investment on all its stakeholders. The result was the co-design of the first version of a useful tool to assess the impacts of its assets across the board, inspired by and not limited to regulations and standards related to ESG investments, such as the “Corporate sustainability due diligence” issued by the European Commission and the GRI Standards (GRI 203: “Indirect economic impacts”).
Chiesi Farmaceutici already makes use of both internationally recognized impact assessment standards such as LEED, B Corp and GRI, as well as frameworks created specifically to monitor and improve the specific impact of its business activities and strive toward the goals set. Thanks to the tool created, these standards and frameworks, as well as the regulatory requirements mentioned above, were the starting point for the creation of a single tool capable of measuring 360-degree impacts of the project.
The tool was applied to the Biotech pilot case, a new center of excellence for the development and production of biotechnology products in Parma, and enabled the identification of strengths, positive impacts, risks, areas where the impact is unknown or unacceptable, and related mitigation actions and opportunities for improvement. The first step of the project was to identify, together with Chiesi strategic figures, the key stakeholders for whom to assess impact, so as to define the main macro-areas of analysis, resulting in the following: Environment, People, Community, Patientsand Caregivers. Through collaboration with Chiesi managers, the material issues, totaling about 80, defining the impacts were then identified, to which qualitative questions and metrics were linked, starting with the data already monitored and integrating any gaps.
The results were summarized in a report, which includes a Biotech Impact Profile and a summary of areas of strength and areas of potential improvement that will be monitored over time by Chiesi Pharmaceuticals.
Developing this tool allows us to fulfill our vocation even better by measuring the systemic impacts of an investment and applying it to any new project, allowing a company to assess environmental and social impacts at different stages of design and execution.
Matilde Breda, Evolution Guide NATIVA