Enel has been named in the Top 100 of the new Thomson Reuters Diversity and Inclusion Index, which ranks over 5,000 companies for their diversity and inclusion performance via environmental, social and governance (ESG) data gathered from sources such as annual reports, company websites, stock exchange filings, CSR reports and the news.
Enel’s score of 74.75 saw it take 25th place in the index, which was created by mass media and business information multinational Thomson Reuters, and it performed impressively against industry and country peers. The Group is the highest ranked of the five Italian companies included in the Top 100, and was also one of only two electric utilities and independent power producers (IPPs) as defined by Thomson Reuters to make the index’s Top 50.
“Enel being named in the index is testament to how the Group has made non-discrimination, equal opportunities and inclusion the basis of its innovation and sustainability-driven business strategy,” said Enel CEO Francesco Starace. “The improvements that we strive for every day can only really flourish in an inclusive and diverse environment, and the launch of this index and the ranking of leading companies across a host of sectors and nations highlights the role of diversity and inclusion in driving innovation, information sharing and professional learning in realising a company’s ambitions. For this reason, diversity and inclusion are absolutely key to our success, and I am delighted that the Group has been recognised in this way.”
The Diversity and Inclusion Index measures company performance in 24 categories spread across four pillars: Diversity, People Development, Inclusion and News Controversies. Only businesses that manage to get a score in all four pillars are given an overall score, which is calculated as an average of the pillar scores and runs from 100 (best in class) down to zero (worst in class). The index is revised every quarter, using the most recent bi-weekly data update from the Thomson Reuters ESG database.
In addition to its notable overall performance, Enel also excelled in all four data point pillars, hitting the highest scores of any Italian business in every pillar and scoring a best in class 100 in the News Controversies pillar.
Enel’s commitment to delivering the highest sustainability standards has attracted increasing interest from socially responsible investment funds (SRIs): based on the latest figures as of December 31st, 2015, SRIs own 7.7% of Enel’s total outstanding shares (5.9% recorded at the end of 2014), equal to 10.3% of the company’s free-float (8.6% as of December 31st, 2014).