Sustainability at Oakley Capital (OCI Investment Adviser)
In this section, Aga Siemiginowska, Head of Sustainability at Oakley Capital, summarises the sustainability strategy.
We are determined to lead by example
At Oakley, being a responsible investor means integrating environmental, social and governance themes into our strategy and that of our portfolio companies, seeking to reduce risk and create long-term, sustainable value for the investors who have entrusted us with their capital.”
Aga Siemiginowska Head of Sustainability at Oakley Capital.
OCI aligns itself with Oakley's sustainability practices and their importance.
Oakley has set strong sustainability foundations and developed a sustainability programme focused on those topics that are most material to the business and the investment portfolio. Oakley believes there are some sustainability topics that are universal, and therefore the sustainability programme is centred around three key themes: (i) energy and climate change, (ii) equity, diversity and inclusion (‘EDI’), and (iii) cybersecurity and data protection. Oakley recognises these as critical for all businesses, irrespective of sector, geographical location or scale, and that, if not managed appropriately, they can have an adverse impact on value. Oakley has continued their sustainability journey across these themes alongside the portfolio.
Sustainability programme
Energy and climate change
In 2024, Oakley measured its full carbon footprint which included Scope 1, 2 and relevant operational Scope 3 emissions for the calendar year 2023. This footprint is based on actual data for Scopes 1 and 2, and a combination of activity-based and spend-based approaches dependent on data availability for Scope 3, providing a credible carbon emissions baseline.
In addition, in June 2024, Oakley published their inaugural Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (‘TCFD’) report, demonstrating a commitment to transparency and alignment with globally recognised climate-related financial disclosure standards. The report, which can be found here, outlines in more detail Oakley’s approach to climate risk and opportunity and provides additional metrics.
Oakley is also a member of the Initiative Climat International (‘iCI’), a collaborative network of private equity firms working together to tackle climate change within the private markets industry. Oakley representatives sit on bodies such as the Regulatory Working Group, which aims to help provide clarity and guidance to private equity firms on climate-related regulations.
Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI)
Oakley believes that diverse teams make better decisions and generate better results. Accordingly, Oakley enhanced its internal capabilities through the establishment of the Oakley EDI Working Group in 2022, which is now anchored by a focused EDI Action Plan. To drive effectiveness, the action plan is updated based on feedback received through Oakley’s annual employee engagement survey, to cover those areas most important to employees, such as inclusive culture, fair management and career development, and social mobility. In addition, Oakley’s commitment to a diverse and inclusive workforce translates through continual development of initiatives; in 2024, programmes included all Oakley new joiners completing EDI training, a company-wide mentoring programme, and the launch of Mystery Coffees which pairs employees across teams and roles every five weeks to meet for coffee, enabling employees to develop their internal network, share experience, and gain valuable insight.
Oakley also works proactively with Out Investors and Level 20, leading industry organisations, and initiatives that aim to make the investment industry more inclusive. In January 2024, Oakley Partner Rebecca Gibson, was appointed Chair of Level 20 to further support the progression of women in senior leadership in European private equity.
Cybersecurity and data protection
Oakley has continued to strengthen cybersecurity and data protection measures to ensure that systems remain resilient against the ever-evolving threat landscape.
By aligning the Oakley business support capabilities with Oakley IT infrastructure, a robust foundation has been created for the future growth and security of operations. Using NIST-2 as a guiding framework, in 2024 Oakley has been building processes and systems to continually improve its ability to protect, detect and respond to the increasing numbers and sophistication of cybersecurity threats.
Employee training and awareness are also a core component of Oakley cybersecurity approach. Cybersecurity training is required for all new joiners, and annual refreshers courses as well as regular phishing simulations are executed for the entire Oakley team.
Carbon footprint insights:
100% of portfolio companies now have insights into their carbon footprint and its drivers.
100%
Cybersecurity monitoring:
100% of portfolio companies onboarded onto Oakley’s cybersecurity monitoring platform.
100%
Approach to responsible investment
Oakley focuses on investing in mid-market companies across four core sectors: Technology, Education, Consumer and Business Services. The Sustainability Team collaborates with the Investment Team and provides support on portfolio company management throughout the investment process.
Oakley's responsible investment process consists of four key stages:
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1. Initial
screening
Preliminary assessment of sustainability risks and opportunities
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2. Due
diligence
Due diligence carried out using internal resources, or external consultants as appropriate, including:
Red flag assessment
Materiality assessment – identification of (company-specific) sustainability-related risks and opportunities
Stewardship
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3a. Onboarding
programme
Sustainability onboarding with Oakley team
Addressing urgent issues identified as part of due diligence
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3b. Engagement and support
Ongoing support and guidance provided by the Sustainability Team
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3c. Monitoring
Active stewardship including:
Engagement with company management on sustainability topics
Annual ESG monitoring and review of progress
Company KPI reporting to Oakley
Sustainability topics and progress discussed at Board meetings
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4. Exit
Support in preparing for sustainability due diligence from prospective investors
ESG vendor due diligence as appropriate
Active stewardship
Oakley aims to empower management teams during the ownership phase, providing them with the knowledge and tools to identify and manage sustainability risks and opportunities in their sector. Assessing these risks and opportunities from the earliest stages of evaluating a potential investment is an important first step in building trust, which continues to develop through the Oakley’s stewardship programme after completion.
Oakley recognises the importance of understanding the material sustainability topics of each of its investments. In addition to the three portfolio-wide sustainability themes of energy and climate change, EDI, and cybersecurity and data privacy that are considered important for conducting good business, mitigating risks and ensuring our investments are prepared for the future, Oakley conducts materiality assessments to identify company-specific sustainability themes.
Portfolio-wide themes
Oakley’s approach to portfolio engagement involves acting in partnership and providing support for the advancement of sustainability practices. In 2024, a key priority was knowledge sharing and capacity building within the portfolio. As part of this, Oakley hosted their annual Sustainability Forum, which included portfolio company case studies, sharing good practices on topics such as building culture through employee engagement, as well as thematic workshops on material topics for portfolio companies including greenhouse gas (‘GHG’) emissions, sustainability considerations for highly acquisitive businesses, and value creation. Following the positive feedback received on the Sustainability Forum, the Oakley Sustainability Team organised a webinar series for portfolio companies, covering topics including social value, supply chain management, and data collection.
Oakley also continues to support portfolio companies, providing access to sustainability resources and tools in relation to the three key sustainability themes: energy and climate change, EDI, and cybersecurity and data protection. This includes the carbon accounting and advisory platform, and diversity and employee engagement tool launched in 2023, as well as an updated cybersecurity monitoring platform that provides weekly cybersecurity scans and quarterly monitoring surveys.
Our sustainability and Community Engagement Partners
OCI partners
Oakley partners
Oakley sustainability
Logos represent organisations / bodies of which Oakley and/or OCI is a recognised supporter, signatory or member. The above firm-level CSR and climate-related initiatives do not have a direct bearing on investment decisions made for OCI or for Oakley-managed funds. References to firm-level initiatives do not require OCI or Oakley to engage with portfolio companies. Oakley is also a member or contributor to other industry bodies and trade associations, which, at times, may adopt positions or undertake advocacy activities that are not consistent with the aims or ethos of the organisations and initiatives referred to above.
For more information on Oakley’s portfolio engagement and sustainability performance, please see the Oakley Capital Responsible Investment Report.