One fifth of European real estate asset managers believe their organisation lacks the expertise to assess the ESG performance of their assets and take them to net zero, according to a new report published by Deepki.
The ESG data intelligence firm surveyed 50 European commercial real estate asset managers in the UK, Germany, France, Spain and Italy and found that while 80% of respondents said they recognised the importance of having a “comprehensive ESG strategy” in place to manage financial risk in their organisations, an expertise gap exists that will need filling if the industry is to meet its emissions reductions targets.
Almost a fifth of respondents (18%) said they did not think their organisation was making suitable investment in ESG resources and more than three-quarters (77%) said they were training employees to improve their ESG expertise and plug the knowledge gap.
Vincent Bryant, CEO and co-founder of Deepki, said: “Our report shows that the European commercial real estate sector is focused on improving its sustainability credentials, as well as the energy performance of assets, and formulating long-term ESG strategies to manage financial risk.
“However, given the scale of the climate emergency, there is a real sense of urgency for commercial real estate managers to do more to plug the gaps in expertise, and to do it quickly. Companies must turn to technological solutions in order to address these challenges in a scalable, sustainable way.”
