Should CFOs Care About ESG? The Numbers Say Yes.

The debate around environmental, social, and governance (ESG) is far from settled. Is it a genuine driver of long-term value or just an obsession with sustainability? While some critics dismiss ESG as a passing trend or a regulatory burden, others argue ESG is a strategic imperative. But beyond the rhetoric, what do the numbers say about whether chief financial officers (CFOs) should care about ESG?

Finance 2035 Provides Insight into ESG Value to Investors

OneStream dug into the numbers in our flagship study, Finance 2035: Return to Investment. We found that “almost three-quarters of [global] investors (73%) say that organizations should prioritize strengthening their ESG and sustainability credentials if they want to gain a global competitive advantage and make themselves as investable as possible.” Even in the United States, 76% of investors agreed. Our study revealed that the focus on sustainability is strongest among investors in Singapore.

Investors worldwide are signaling that ESG performance is now a core component of business value.

Sustainability is particularly important. For example, a strong majority of investors (88%) reported being more likely to invest in organizations with a comprehensive net-zero plan. Further, 85% say that, “today, a CFO must be able to quantify and improve other measures of corporate value, beyond profit alone.” In other words, investors expect CFOs to shepherd financial performance AND a broader value narrative that includes the tenants of ESG.

ESG Is Financial Strategy, Not Just Compliance

The good news is that CFOs are in a strong position to lead. Today, finance teams already bring the structure, discipline, and data mindset needed to manage complex information. Those same strengths are exactly what ESG reporting requires. When finance applies its expertise to sustainability data, ESG stops being just a reporting obligation and also becomes a strategic advantage.

Better access to ESG insights means finance can help drive decisions that support both stronger financial performance and long-term sustainability. For instance, by building ESG metrics into forecasts, companies gain a clearer view of how sustainability factors impact performance. The insights gained might mean understanding emissions by product line, how energy costs affect margins, or where workforce trends intersect with ESG risks.

Connecting these insights to financial planning is not just about better reporting — it’s about making smarter, more informed decisions.

ESG Isn’t Just About Spreadsheets Anymore

As we outlined in Why ESG Reporting Should Matter to FP&A Leaders, ESG data used to be scattered across spreadsheets, PDFs, and niche systems. That disparate data made it difficult to manage and even harder to trust. That is changing quickly. Today, however, corporate performance management (CPM) platforms like OneStream are evolving to support both financial and non-financial data, including ESG metrics, in a single environment.

(See OneStream’s Solution Tour and Solution Guide for ESG.)

For CFOs, this shift opens the door to more integrated and strategic planning. Modern CPM platforms now allow ESG and financial key performance indicators to be tracked together, creating a unified view of performance. CPM platforms also bring the same level of rigor to ESG data as is applied to financial reporting, with built-in workflows and audit trails that support transparency and accountability.

Now, CFOs can model the impact of emissions or compliance costs using driver-based planning. Scenario analysis can include both financial and environmental outcomes, offering a more complete picture of risk and opportunity.

With the right tools in place, CFOs can stop chasing ESG data. They can instead start using it with the same confidence and clarity CFOs bring to sales forecasts, workforce planning, or capital investments.

What’s Next?

The data is clear: ESG is no longer a niche concern or a regulatory checkbox. Instead, ESG is a growing priority for investors and a meaningful lever for long-term value creation. CFOs are uniquely positioned to lead this shift by embedding ESG into financial strategy, planning, and performance management. And those who embrace this role will not only meet rising expectations but also help shape a more resilient, future-ready business.

Want to see how finance leaders are turning ESG into a strategic advantage? Check out our recent webinar, “The Role of Finance in Building a Sustainable Future: ESG as a Strategic Imperative.”

In the webinar, we explore how CFOs can lead ESG efforts, align sustainability with corporate strategy, and navigate the evolving regulatory landscape with confidence.

Discover how OneStream empowers finance leaders to own the close — bringing ESG reporting into a unified platform that streamlines financial close, consolidation, reconciliations, and reporting. The result: trusted ESG insights delivered with speed, accuracy, and control.