Communicating sustainability in a complex world – reflections from an ERM Panel

Last week, I had the privilege of joining ERM’s strategic communications panel discussion in London, exploring how organisations can communicate effectively about sustainability in today’s ever-evolving political and economic landscape. Hosted by ERM’s Emily Luscombe and featuring keynote insights by Suzanne Shelton – ahead of the publication of an ERM report on sustainability perspectives – the session brought together sustainability and communications leaders to share practical strategies, challenges and opportunities for impactful sustainability communications.

As a B2B energy services company operating in the UK, US and Australia, SmartestEnergy sits at the heart of the energy transition. Our customers, partners and employees expect us not only to support their net zero journeys but to walk the talk ourselves. Here are my reflections and key takeaways from a lively and thought-provoking discussion.

The power of authentic and aligned messaging

One of the strongest themes to emerge in the panel discussion, was the need for authenticity and alignment in sustainability messaging. As I shared on the panel, it’s hard for a business to have a different messaging strategy internally and externally. Employee and external stakeholder messaging should be joined up end-to-end otherwise there’s a risk that companies will lose trust among the very groups of people they care most about. Trust starts with transparency, which is one of the pillars of our brand voice at SmartestEnergy.

This sentiment was echoed by fellow panellists, Belita Amlot of Anglo American. She emphasised that communications need to be transparent, credible and resonate with different stakeholder groups, while Sarah Gordon of LSE reminded us that “the communications challenge is the biggest challenge in climate change.”

Local nuance and building relationships

In a world where sustainability is increasingly politicised, cutting through the noise requires more than generic statements. At SmartestEnergy, we’re engaging local PR agencies and focusing on building meaningful relationships with journalists, because local nuance in storytelling really matters. We’re energising partnerships that last and aiming to be the go-to expert our stakeholders trust and reach out to.

As I noted during the panel when talking to our media relations efforts, we need to achieve a useful level of detail and relevance for readers in our communications and via media engagement. Which means we often share insights from not just our CEO, but also our subject matter experts within the business. For example, in talking to our new graduate scheme we engaged a current apprentice to share their experience of working with us early in their career.

Collective action and enduring Impact

The panel concluded with a call for collective action and enduring impact to create lasting value. When organisations collaborate – sharing best practices, insights and challenges – they amplify their impact, build trust and accelerate progress towards shared sustainability goals.

As a closing remark, Adinah Shackleton of Permira, importantly highlighted that there are great learnings from across the industry – like the examples conveyed in the panel discussion – that we should continue to communicate to ensure we make progress in sustainability.

Final thoughts

Communicating about sustainability is both an enabler and a challenge. It requires honesty about the journey, clarity on progress and a willingness to adapt language and approach as the landscape shifts. As we continue to expand globally and support our customers on their net zero journeys, we remain committed to authentic, aligned and impactful communications, because that’s how we build trust and drive real change.