Abstract
During digital transformation of the economy, a lack of information and communication technology (ICT) governance and adherence to environmental, social and governance (ESG) principles exposes a company to significant risks. Based on the research in the article, the guidance for ICT and ESG governance by the board of directors (BoD) of an organization was provided. The first part of the outlines the need for an active participation of the BoD in the ICT governance and importance of its integration with ESG principles. The second part highlights the requirement for a company to identify the necessary level of expertise in ICT and its impact on corporate development. The third part discusses the structure and the main areas of ICT governance as well as the tasks that the BoD solves in this context. The fourth part discusses the role of the BoD in ESG risk identification. The fifth part is devoted to a changing agenda of board meetings in the time of digitalization and ESG challenges. The sixth part is dedicated to the growing role of ICT and ESG committees of the BoD. The results are summarized in the conclusion.
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Notes
- 1.
Care for the environment, social well-being and a responsible approach to corporate governance form the so-called ESG (environmental, social, governance) factors.
- 2.
The 2016 Chief Digital Officer Study by PWC highlights that 19% of surveyed companies have a chief information officer, with this figure being 38% for companies from Europe, the Middle East and Africa and 23% in North America. For details see PwC (2016).
- 3.
The Center for Audit Quality (CAQ) has developed this tool to help audit committees execute their oversight responsibilities for financial reporting impacted by emerging technologies.
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Yukhno, A.S. (2022). ICT Governance and ESG Factors: A New Agenda for the Boards of Directors. In: Zavyalova, E.B., Popkova, E.G. (eds) Industry 4.0. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-79496-5_4
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