● 83% of respondents agree on importance of a “comprehensive ESG strategy”
● Almost a quarter recognize the necessity for more investment in ESG resources
● Three-quarters will fill the ESG gap by training employees to improve their expertise
Posted by Johann Nacario — September 12, 2023 — A new report published by ESG data intelligence provider Deepki highlights the efforts from real estate managers to better understand 
the energy performance of their portfolios and the potential impact of poor sustainability on their investments, allowing them to take the requisite measures to mitigate risk. The study is based on research with 250 European commercial real estate (CRE) asset managers in the UK, Germany, France, Spain and Italy.
The research identifies an environmental, social and governance (ESG) expertise gap in commercial real estate asset management. While the majority (80%) of respondents recognize the importance of a “comprehensive ESG strategy” in managing financial risk in their organizations, one fifth (21%) say their organization lacks the expertise to assess the ESG performance of their assets and take them to net zero. Filling the expertise gap will prove instrumental in driving the sector’s energy performance and achieving its emissions reductions targets.
While three-quarters of respondents do believe their organization is investing enough to improve ESG performance, expertise is another matter. This is reflected by almost a fifth of respondents (18%) saying they did not think their organization was making suitable investment in ESG resources. The survey reveals a willingness from commercial real estate asset managers to address the expertise deficit, with more than three-quarters (77%) training employees to improve their ESG expertise.
Vincent Bryant, CEO and co-founder of Deepki, commented on the research findings:
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.
At Deepki, our capabilities allow us to deliver two-fold positive impact at scale. First, to allow clients to spend less time collecting and analyzing data, and more time taking action to obtain measurable results, and second, to help clients raise awareness, train internal resources, and acquire the most up-to-date ESG Best Practices from peers.
Deepki offers a fully populated ESG data intelligence platform to help commercial real estate investors, owners and managers improve the ESG performance of their real estate assets, and in the process enhance their value.
The SaaS platform enables clients to collect environmental, social and governance data, get a comprehensive overview of their portfolio’s ESG performance, establish investment plans to reach net zero, and assess results. It also allows users to report to key stakeholders. The platform is supported by carbon and ESG experts who partner with clients across data collection and analysis, through to ESG strategy definition and implementation.
Now with over 400 employees, five offices across Europe and operating in 52 countries, Deepki has become a global leader in end-to-end ESG and data intelligence solutions for environmental transition in the commercial real estate sector, with more than 1.3 million assets under management in all asset classes (offices, logistics, healthcare, retail, multi-family, etc.).
To download the report, Overcoming the Energy Crisis in Commercial Real Estate, visit Deepki.
