【波士頓咨詢BCG】2024私募股權(quán)的可持續(xù)發(fā)展報(bào)告369mb

SustainabilityinPrivateEquity,

2024October

2024Contents| Introduction| AYear

ofSustainabilityProgressinthePrivate

Markets11

| HowPrivateEquity

FundsCanMeetInvestorExpectations22

| Where

ArePrivateEquityFundson

TheirWaytoNetZero?29

| Appendix:

AboutOur

Research32

| About

theAuthorsBOSTONCONSULTING

GROUP

1IntroductionWearepleasedtopresentthe2024editionofourannualreportonsustainabilityinprivateequity(PE).Lastyearwesharedourinauguralreport,outliningthesustainabilityperformanceoftheindustryanditsconnectiontovaluecreation.Thisyear’sdatafromtheESGDataConvergenceInitiative(EDCI)showsthat,relativetotheirpublic

compa-nypeers,privatelyownedcompanies’performanceonsustainabilitytopicscontinuestobemixed—outperform-ingpublicentitiesinsomeareas,suchasjobcreation,

andlagginginothers,suchasboard

diversity.Anencouragingfindingisprivatecompanies’improvementacrossvarioussustainabilitymetricsduringtheirtradition-alholdperiod,oftenoutpacingtheirpublicpeers.TheinherentinvestmentapproachofPEfirms—whichhavealong-termfocusandconsiderableinfluenceovermanage-mentoftheirportfoliocompanies—positionsthemto

driveimprovementsinthesocialandenvironmentalperfor-manceoftheircompanies,especiallywherethereisalinktolong-termvaluecreation.Increasingly,thistrendishelpingtomakesustainabilityacompetitiveadvantageforprivateequityandthecompaniesinwhichthesectorinvests.Whiletheexactvaluecreationmechanismsvarybyindustry,thisadvantagecancomethroughreducedoperat-ingcosts,lowerrisks,andnewgreengrowth

opportunities.Overthepastyear,theconversationaroundsustainabilityintheprivatemarketshascontinuedtoadvanceatpace.Wehaveobservedanaccelerationinthenumberofdedi-catedclimatefundsandgrowthinsustainability-focusedvaluecreationeffortsamongportfoliocompanies.TheEDCIhasrapidlyincreaseditscoverageoftheprivateequityuniverse,tomorethan450majorPEgeneralpart-ners(GPs)andlimitedpartners(LPs).Withmorethan150,000datapointscollectedfromapproximately6,200PE-backedcompanies,wenowhaveasignificantlygreaterunderstandingofsustainabilityoutcomesintheprivatemarkets.(Seetheappendix,“AboutOur

Research.”)Inthisyear’sreport,weoffernewinsightsonhowsustain-abilityintheprivatemarketshasevolvedoverthelast

year,alongsidedeepdivesintodecarbonizationanddata-drivenperspectivesonthesustainabilityexpectationsoftheindustry’sLPsandhowGPsareorganizingin

response.WebelievethisreportaddstothegrowingevidencethatmanyPEfirmsarewell-positionedtodrivechangeonavarietyofsustainabilitytopics,whileofferinginsightsonhowtheycanbestrealizethischangeinpractice.Still,thereismuchworktobedone.Asthemarkets

continuous-lyrewardalong-termfocusonsustainability,PEinvestorsarewell-positionedtopursuethisopportunity,driving

valueforinvestorsandcommunities

alike.ByBenjaminEntrayguesandVinay

ShandalAboutthe

EDCITheESGDataConvergenceInitiative(EDCI)isaconsortiumofprivateequitygeneralandlimitedpartnerswhosegoalistocreateacriticalmassofmeaningful,performance-basedsustainabilitydatafromprivatecompaniesbyconvergingona

stan-dardizedsetofsustainabilitymetricsforcompaniesin

theprivatemarkets.ThedatacollectedallowsGPsandportfoliocom-paniestobenchmarktheircurrentpositionandassessprogresstowardsustainabilityimprovements,whileenablinggreatertransparencyandmorecomparableportfolioinformationforLPs.AsmorePEinvestorsjointheinitiative,

thedataqualityand

richnessof

insights

arising

from

the

benchmark

and

annual

survey

will

only

continue

to

grow

in

accuracy

and

usefulness.Ifyouareinterestedinlearning

more:PleasevisittheEDCIwebsiteformoreinformationabouttheinitiative,includinghowto

participate.FeelfreetocontacttheEDCIwithanyquestionsat

info@.2SUSTAINABILITYIN

PRIVATEEQUITY,2024Conversationswithprivateequity(PE)investors

revealagrowingconsensus:Formanyportfolio

companies,sustainabilityhasbecomeaprovenleverfor

valuecreation,whetherthroughreducedoperatingcosts,lowerrisks,orgreen-relatedrevenueopportunities.That’swhymanyPEfirmsaresteppingup,drivingtangibleimprove-mentsinsustainabilityacrosstheirportfolios.

Forexample,comparedtotheESGDataConvergenceInitiative(EDCI)’s

2023benchmark,renewableenergyuseatportfoliocom-paniesisup,andbothjobcreationandgenderdiversityrepresentationinprivatecompanyC-suitescontinuetooutpacepubliccompanies.However,thepictureisn’tentirelyrosy.Jobcreationatportfoliocompanieshasslowed—areflectionofthecur-renteconomicclimateandongoinginvestmentindigitiza-tionandautomation.Andprivatecompaniesstilltrail

theirpublicpeersingenderdiversityattheboard

level.ThesubstantialincreaseinEDCIdatapointsavailableforanalysisthisyeartellsitsownstory.Wecollectedover150,000datapointscoveringaround6,200privatecompa-niesheldbymorethan260PEfirms—a45%jumpfromlastyear.Thisupticksignalsastrongpushwithinthepri-vateequityecosystemtowardimprovingthequalityandconsistencyofsustainability

reporting.AYearofSustainabilityProgressinthePrivate

MarketsBy

Ben

Morley,

Vinay

Shandal,

Tim

Mohin,

GregFischer,

Claudia

Hobl-Felbermayr,Vivek

Menon,

Lorenna

Buck,

Benjamin

Baxter,

Matthew

Elstone,

and

Mac

HiblerBOSTONCONSULTING

GROUP3Withanotheryear’sworthofdatatoanalyze,itisbecom-ingincreasinglyclearthatPEfirmsarewellpositionedtomakearealimpactontheportfoliocompaniestheyown.Whileprivatecompaniesoftenstartwithweakersustain-abilityprofiles,thoseownedbyPEfundsthatputafocusonsustainabilityshowimprovementsacrossseveralcriticalmetrics,onaverage,includingrenewableenergyuseandsafetyoutcomesduringtheirtraditionalhold-period.Thismirrorsthebroaderabilityofprivateequityto

professional-izeandenhancebusinessesundertheir

ownership.Making

ProgressThePEindustryisincreasinglyrecognizingthatformanyportfoliocompaniesimprovingsustainabilityoutcomesisgoodbusiness.Themeansofvaluecreationwillvaryfordifferentcompaniesindifferentindustries,butthe

oppor-tunitiesarisingfromstrongersustainabilitypracticescantakemanyforms,

including:reducedoperatingcosts,suchasthroughenergyeffi-ciencymeasuresandadoptionoflower-costrenewableenergy;lowerrisks,suchasbyavoidingregulatory

fines;newgreengrowthandrevenueexpansionpathwaysthroughnewcircularityvaluepools,theabilityto

capturegreenpremiums,andappealingtocustomerswhohavesuppliersustainabilitytargets;

andthebusinessopportunityinherentinamore

diverseleadershipteamdrivingcompanyagendas

forward.BCGhighlightedpreviouslyhowclimateleaderscanrealizetheseandothercommercialbenefitsandgaincompetitiveadvantageintwoWorldEconomicForumreports:

“Winning

theRacetoNetZero”and“Winningin

GreenMarkets.”Giventhesheerscaleoftheprivateequityindustry,thepotentialforsignificant,lastingimpactinthecoming

yearsisenormous.Thegoodnewsisthatmanyportfoliocompa-niesunderPEownershiparemakingstridesacrosskeysustainabilitymetrics,andparticularlyinrenewable

energyusage,jobcreation,andC-suite

diversity.RenewaBLe

energyGlobally,thecommercialcaseforrenewableenergyisbe-comingdifficulttoignore,andleadersarerespondingbyscalinguptheirusage.(Seesidebar“TheRenewableEnergy

Advantage.”)Sincelastyear,bothpublicandprivate

marketsinaggregatehavenudgedtheirrenewableenergyusageupward.Amongprivatecompaniesthatuserenewables,themedianEDCIcompanyincreaseditsusageto30%in2023,up

from

28%

last

year.

In

comparison,

public

companies

sawarisefrom29%to32%overthesame

period.Evenmorepromisingisthenarrowinggapbetweenprivateandpubliccompaniesinadoptingrenewableenergy.Thepercentageofprivatecompaniesthatboostedtheirrenew-ableenergyusageby25percentagepointsormoreroseby2percentagepointsfromlastyearto12%,comparedtojust6%ofpubliccompaniesduringthesameperiod.Attheregionallevel,privatecompaniesinNorthAmericastilllagsignificantlybehindtheirEuropeancounterparts.Factoringincompaniesthatusenorenewablesatall,themedianEuropeancompanysources22%ofitsenergyfromrenewables.Bycomparison,themedianrenewablessourcerate

in

North

America

is

just

1%,

up

from

0%

last

year.Lastyear’sreportnotedthatrecentpolicychangesandincentivesintheUScoulddriveimprovementsinrenew-ableenergyconsumption.Whilethesedevelopmentsarestillexpectedtoshapetherenewablestrajectory,the

Inter-nationalEnergyAgencyanticipatesthatthemostsignifi-cantimpactsontheavailabilityofrenewableenergywillnotmaterializeuntilthesecondhalfofthe2020s,giventhelengthydeployment

timelines.Asaresult,weexpectamorerapidaccelerationinrenew-ablesadoptionamongprivatecompaniesintheUSlater

inthedecade,aspolicysupportstrengthensandcostcom-petitivenesswithfossilfuelsimproves.Already,therehasbeensomeprogressinNorthAmerica,withthe

percentageofprivatecompaniesusingnorenewableenergydecreas-ingfrom54%in2022to49%in

2023.Thedecisiontoswitchtorenewablescanbecomplex,

butasthecommercialbenefitsbecomeundeniableinmanycontexts,weurgePEfirmstoencouragetheir

portfoliocompaniestowardgreaterrenewableenergy

use—unlockingvalueforshareholdersandstakeholdersalike.Asitstands,significantvalueisbeingleftonthe

table.JoB

creationLastyear’sEDCIresultsdispelledthemyththatprivatecompaniesareslowertocreatenewjobs,netofattrition,thantheirpubliccounterparts.Thisyear,however,jobcreationhasslowedacrosstheboard—downfrom9netnewhiresper100full-timeequivalentemployees(FTEs)atprivatecompaniesto4newhires,andfrom5tojust1atpubliccompanies.Thisdecelerationreflectsthechalleng-ingmacroeconomicenvironment,higherinterestrates,slowercompanygrowthrates,andincreasingemphasisondigitizationandautomation.Still,privatecompaniescon-tinuetocreatejobsatahigherratethanpublic

ones.4SUSTAINABILITYIN

PRIVATEEQUITY,2024Withover$246billioninassetsundermanagement,Sweden’sEQTisamongtheworld’slargestprivateequityinvestors.It’salsoaninvestorthatismakingtheadoptionofrenewableenergyacrossitsportfolioatopstrategicpriority.Indoingso,EQThasincreasedtheaverageshareofrenewableusageamongitsportfoliocompaniesto50%,significantlyhigherthanthetypicalusagereportedbyEDCI

members.“Encouragingportfoliocompaniestodeveloparenewableenergyprocurementmodelsuitablefortheirambitionandindustryisoneofthefirstleverswelooktopull

asweestab-lishtheirdecarbonizationplans,”saysEnolOsorioRodri-guez,Director,EQTInfrastructure.Tobringadditionalexper-tisetotheirportfoliocompanies,EQTpartnerswithtechnicaladvisorslikeSchneiderElectricandSouthpoletoassistinidentifyingthemostappropriateinstrumentsandsourcesofrenewables,optimizedspecificallytoeachportfo-liocompany’senergy

needs.Optionsincludedeployingon-siterenewables,enteringintoPowerPurchaseAgreementswithenergysuppliers,andsecuringEnergyAttributeCertificates(EACs)(instrumentsthatrepresentproofofsecuringclean,carbon-freegenera-tionofenergy).ThesepartnershipsallowEQTtobringitsconsiderablebuyingpowertothetable.Forexample,

EQTincombinationwiththechosentechnicaladvisorcannegoti-atebulkEACstomeettheneedsofcompaniesacrossthefirm’sportfolio,oftenresultinginsignificantcostsavingswhencomparedtocompaniesseekingsuchcertificatesindividually.Inpartneringwithmanagementteamsacrossitsportfolio

ofcompaniestoprocuremeaningfulquantitiesofrenewableenergy,OsorioRodriguezsays,“Webelievewearenotonlydeliveringonourclimateambitionsbutalsobuildingcom-petitiveadvantageforourportfoliocompaniesastheybe-comemoremature,cost-effective,andindependentinacompetitiveandcrowdedmarket.”O(jiān)sorioRodriguezcitesseveralcommercialbenefitsforcompaniesthathaveincor-poratedrenewablesintotheirmix,allofwhichalignwithBCG’sownexperience,aswehighlightedinlastyear’sarticleonrenewableenergyandPE.CompaniesenteringintoPPAswithagreedpricingachievemorestableenergycostsandreducedpricevolatility.Renewablesusagecanalsoimprovecompanies’competitivepositioninginsupplychainswithcustomersthatincorporateemissionsintoprocurementdecisions.Andcompaniesdeployingon-siterenewablesgainlowerenergycostsandgreaterreliabilityintheeventofdisruptionsofthepower

grid.TheRenewableEnergy

AdvantageBOSTONCONSULTING

GROUP5Theslowdownisconsistentacrossregionsandsectors,withjobcreationintheUSslowingmorethaninEuropeorAsia,albeitfromahigherbaseline.Atthesectorlevel,themostnotabledeclineswereinServicesandinTechnologyandCommunications,wheremediannetnewhiresper100FTEfellby9and7.5,respectively.(SeeExhibit1.)Yetitisreas-suringthatjobgrowthremainedpositivedespitesignificantlayoffsatseveralmajorprofessionalservicesand

technologycompaniesoverthepastyear.Othersectorsthatsawsignifi-cantshiftsinhiringpatternsincludedsuchworkforce-intensivesectorsasFoodandBeverageand

Infrastructure.DiversityForthethirdyearinarow,privatecompaniesareoutpacingpublic

companies

ingender

diversity

at

the

C-suite

level,

buttheyarestilllaggingattheboardlevel.Seventy-sevenper-centofprivatecompanieshaveatleastonewomanin

theC-suite,comparedto64%inpublicmarkets—a

significantmargin.Buttheproportionofprivatecompanieswithatleastonewomanontheirboardrose3percentagepointsthisyear,to61%,whileasimilarincreasebroughttheper-centageforpubliccompaniesto

89%.Discussionswithleadersatseveralprivateequityfirmssuggestthataprimaryreasonisthesmallerboardsizeatmanyprivatecompaniescomparedtopubliccompanies.Thisobservationissupportedbyourresearch;thesmallercompaniesinourdatasettendtohavesmaller

boards.Nearly70%ofcompanieswithmorethan$200millioninrevenuehaveatleastonewomanontheboard,

comparedtojustoverhalfofthosewithrevenuesunder$50million.(SeeExhibit

2.)Moreover,portfoliocompanyboardsoftenincludeseniorinvestmentteammembersfromPEfirms,whothemselvestendnottobediverseatseniorlevels.Still,theslowprog-ressinthisareaisconcerning,asdiversedecision-makingteamshavebeenshowntodrivebetterbusinessoutcomes.Expandingordiversifyingboardsisoneoftheeasiestwaystofosterbettercompanyoversight,andwehopetoseemoreprogressinthisareaintheyears

ahead.Sources:EDCIbenchmark;BCG

analysis.Note:

Analysisincludesonlybuyoutcompanies.1Privatebenchmark

only.PrivatePublicFinancialsN=662022N=64N=1,581N=4,484N=143N=142N=142N=14N=111N=145N=86N=25N=136TransportationTechnology

&CommunicationsServicesResourceTransformationRenewableResources&Alt.

EnergyHealth

CareInfrastructureFood

&BeverageConsumerGoods10.08.511.312.65.913.811.68.45.64.47.54.33.83.62.09.86.15.20.14.33.12.3541Exhibit1-JobCreationRatesDeclinedAcrossPublicandPrivateMarkets,butPrivateCompaniesOutpacePublicOnesinCreating

JobsMedianchangeinnet

newhires Medianchangeinnetnewhiresbysector(#per

100FTE)1(#per100

FTE)–54%9Extractives

&MineralsProcessing–81%–2.5–4.2–7.5–9.0–3.9–4.0–5.5–3.2–5.5–2.1+1.220236SUSTAINABILITYIN

PRIVATEEQUITY,2024Holding

OnAmongthekeystrengthsofthePEinvestmentmodelis

thelongertimehorizonthatPEfirmsoperateoncomparedtopubliclytradedcompanies,whichareoftenunderpressuretodeliverquarterlyresults.ThistimeframeallowsPEfirmstofocusonimprovingtheperformanceoftheirportfoliocompaniesovertheirperiodofownership.Lastyear,theEDCIbeganaskingGPstoprovidedataonhowlongtheyhaveheldthecompaniesin

theirportfolios.Thegoalwastogainabetterunderstandingofhowtheholdperiodaffectsbothfinancialperformanceandsustainabilityprogress.

Theresultsareclear:Overthedurationofafund’sownershipofacompany,sustainabilitymetricsimproveonaverage,par-ticularlyinrenewableenergyusage,work-relatedinjuries,diversity,andemployee

engagement.RenewableEnergy.Aswe’veseen,privatecompaniesareincreasinglyadoptingrenewableenergy.Withanadditionalyear’sworthofdata,wecantrackthisprogressovertime.PEfirmstypicallyacquirecompanieswithlowlevelsofrenewableenergyusage—just6%onaverageatacquisi-tion.Butoverthecourseoftheownershipperiod,thisfigureclimbsto14%.(SeeExhibit3.)PEfirmsarecaptur-inglong-termcommercialbenefitsfromincreasingrenew-ableenergyusageovertimeandareofteneffectivelyincor-poratingthisasastrategicleverformeetingfund-leveldecarbonization

commitments.Work-RelatedInjuries.Theholdperiodalsopositively

affectstherateofwork-relatedinjuriesatprivatecompaniesacrossmostsectors.Overall,companiesthathavereportedinjuryratesforthepasttwoyearshavereducedtheirmedianratesfrom2.2per1,000FTEsin2022to1.8in2023,animpres-sive22%decrease.Somehigh-risksectors,notablyInfra-structureandTransportation,havemadeespeciallygoodprogressinthisregard,whileothers,includingResourceTransformationandparticularlyFoodandBeverage,havenot.(SeeExhibit4.)Thedifferentabsolutelevelsofinjuriesoftenreflectthenatureofroleswithinthosecompanies.Forexample,theFoodandBeveragesectorexperienceshighlevelsofinjuriesasworkerscanexperiencecuts,punctures,scrapes,burns,andfallswhenprocessing,packaging,trans-porting,andmanufacturing

foods.Diversity.Thesamehold-periodphenomenonisalsotrueforgenderdiversityinkeymanagementroles.Over60%ofcompaniesheldformorethantwoyearshavewomenontheirboards,6percentagepointshigherthanthoseheldforlessthantwoyears.Similarly,womenplayaroleintheC-suiteatalmost80%ofcompaniesheldformorethantwoyears,comparedto73%ofthoseheldforshorterperiods.(SeeExhibit

5.)Exhibit2-LargerPrivateCompaniesOutperformSmallerCompanies

onDiversity

MetricsProportion

of

companies

with

at

least

one

woman

on

board

or

in

C-suite1N=469Womanonboardof

directorsN=1,221 N=1,636N=1,835N=378Womanin

C-suiteN=869 N=1,359N=1,597<$5M$5Mto

$50M$50Mto

$200M>$200M52%59%54%74%58%77%68%82%Sources:EDCIbenchmark;BCG

analysis.Note:Scalereflectscompanyannual

revenue.1Includesallcompaniesthatprovideddatafor

2023.BOSTONCONSULTING

GROUP7Exhibit3-RenewableEnergyUsageIncreasesOveraPEFirm’sHold

DurationMedianrenewableenergyusageby

hold-period14%N=298 N=1,680 N=1,078Sources:EDCIbenchmark;BCG

analysis.Note:Includesdataforcompaniesthatsubmittedrenewableenergydatain2023,includingcompanieswith0%renewableenergy

use.0

years1to3

years≥4

years6%8%Exhibit4-PrivateCompaniesReportingonWork-RelatedInjuriesShowProgressAcrossSeveral

SectorsMedian#ofwork-relatedinjuriesper1,000FTEsby

sectorN=62N=185N=170N=21N=1132022 2023N=202N=113N=37N=139TransportationTechnology&CommunicationsResourceTransformationRenewableResources&Alternative

EnergyInfrastructureHealth

CareFood&BeverageExtractives

&MineralsProcessingConsumerGoods1.14.58.218.3

17.416.2

16.60.01.618.2

17.125.0

24.28.411.0

10.4–0.9–1.1–2.9–1.1–0.37.6 7.3–0.8–0.6+0.4+0.2Sources:EDCIbenchmark;BCG

analysis.Note:DoesnotincludeServices(N=141)orFinancials(N=28)sectors,whichhadprivatemarketmedianinjuryratesof~0bothin2022and

2023.8SUSTAINABILITYIN

PRIVATEEQUITY,2024EmployeeEngagement.OneareawheretheEDCIhashadaparticularlycatalyticrolehasbeenthedeploymentanduseofemployeesurveys.Thesesurveysarevitalforgaug-ingemployeeengagement,offeringavenuesforthemtoprovidefeedbacktomanagement,and,whenactedupon,improvingtheemployeevaluepropositionandreducingturnover.TheuseofthesesurveyshasgrownsignificantlyamongEDCImembercompanies,risingfrom63%in

2021to74%in

2023.WeatBCGarepleasedtoseethattheEDCI’semphasisonbestpracticesinsustainabilityisdrivingpositiveoutcomesinthiskeyarea.Indeed,we’veheardfromEDCImembersthatincludingthismetrichasencouragedmorewide-spreaduseofsurveysacrosstheirportfoliocompanies.Weexpectthistrendtocontinueascompaniesincreasinglytakethe“no-regrets”pathtoactivelyengagingwithem-ployeesandgatheringtheir

feedback.However,employeesurveysareonlyeffectiveiftheyarecompletedandifemployersactonthefeedbacktheyreceive.Therefore,theEDCIalsotrackssurveycompletionrates.Itisreasonabletoassumethatemployeeswhobelievetheircompanyapproachesinternalsurveyswiththeintentionofimprovingtheemployeevaluepropositionaremorelikelytocompletethem—andinturnbenefitfromtheoutcomes.Andinfact,privatecompanieswithhigheremployeesurveycompletionpercentagesexperi-enceloweremployeeturnover.(SeeExhibits6and

7.)Thisiscrucial:Inmanyinstances,loweremployee

turnovercandirectlyimpactperformance,reducingemployerex-pensesthroughlowerrecruitingandonboardingcostswhileboostingproductivity.Reducedemployeechurnalsoopensupmoreopportunitiesforupskillingandpromotionwithintheworkforce.TheseinsightsalignwithrecentresearchbyJobsfortheFutureandtheWorkforce&Orga-

nizationalResearchCenter,whichhighlightsthecriticalrolethatPEfirms’effortsinmanaginghumancapitalandfosteringqualityjobscanplayingeneratingsustainable,long-termvalueacrosstheirportfoliocompanies.EvidencefromthethirdyearoftheEDCIcontinuestodemonstratethatwhilePE-ownedcompaniesmayinitiallyhaverelativelyweakersustainabilityprofiles,overthedurationofafund’sownershiptheyareableto

significantlyimprovesustainabilityoutcomes,includingrenewableenergyuse,safety,diversity,andemployee

engagement.Theseenhancementsnotonlyalignwithbroadersustain-abilitygoalsbutalsodrivemeasurablebusinessvalue,contributingtothelong-termsuccessandcompetitivenessofportfolio

companies.Thisisnotimeforthe