The committee, made up of a diverse group of individuals from across the company, brings a range of experience in embracing environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) principles and perspectives to advance the firm's sustainability commitment. It seeks to create actionable, measurable goals for internal groups to adopt a CSR-minded approach to doing business. This reflects Commonwealth's commitment to act as a steward for the environment, a leader for community and culture, and a firm governed by reliability and integrity.

"Part of our mission has always been to make a profound difference in our world," said Commonwealth CEO Wayne Bloom. "This committee was formed to serve as a springboard for change—to improve our efforts at integrating the principles of corporate social responsibility into our ongoing decision-making process. I'm very excited to work with this dedicated group and help this initiative evolve."

The report outlines the firm's vision to mitigate its carbon footprint, improve energy efficiency, and reduce waste. Commonwealth has taken steps, such as creating an eco-friendly office space and implementing remote audit programs, conferences, and events, where possible. It is also focusing on its diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts. Scarlett Abraham Clarke, vice president, chief diversity and inclusion officer, has led initiatives that include launching a DEI online hub, hosting a speaker series, and creating Employee Resource Groups to help foster understanding and inclusion.

As a firm that supports independent financial advisors, Commonwealth also understands the importance of sustainable investment practices. In 2008, it had the foresight to start covering socially responsible investing (SRI) from a research perspective. That initiative led to launching a dedicated suite of model portfolios on its discretionary model platform in 2010. These models currently hold more than $500 million in assets under management.*

"We recognized the potential for growth in the SRI space early on," said Peter Essele, vice president, investment management and research, and a member of the CSR committee who also spearheaded the firm's first SRI research efforts. "We anticipated a growing demand and wanted to support our advisors'—and their clients'—evolving preferences for sustainable investments. Today, more than 500 advisors use our SRI/ESG model portfolios, we offer a quarterly ESG Reference Guide to provide recommendations, and we have a sustainable investing newsletter to help clients understand the impact of their investments."

*as of 11/26/2021