[co-author: Mark Newberg, Director of Impact Strategies]

Recently, Larry Fink, the CEO of BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager, took a noteworthy step in an open letter he wrote to the CEO’s of all publicly traded companies. In the letter, Mr. Fink indicated that going forward, BlackRock intends to be asking some “hard questions” about the companies’ plans to integrate environmental, social and governance factors (ESG) and Impact principles into their long-term strategy and management. These questions are being directed to C-Suite and Board level executives at public companies.

What is ESG?

BlackRock defines ESG investing as the incorporation of environmental, social and governance factors directly into the financial analysis of a potential investment to evaluate risks and opportunities...