Quebec Net Positive Unveils its New Business Transition Index

Second edition: Quebec Businesses Transition Barometer

MONTREAL, Nov. 8, 2023 /CNW/ - Quebec Net Positive unveils today the second edition of the Businesses Transition Barometer, the most comprehensive survey on climate action by Quebec businesses, with the addition of a new Transition Index. To carry out this important study, Quebec Net Positive commissioned the research firm Léger, which surveyed 596 Quebec business leaders between August 18 and September 13, 2023.

The new Transition Index provides an overview of businesses' commitment to climate action. The average Transition Index for 2023 is 32.4, which means that Quebec businesses are implementing less than a third of the desirable climate actions in their operations, value chains, organizational culture, and to adapt to climate change. If a business did everything it could in these four key components to be perfectly aligned with a low-carbon transition pathway, its score would be 100. The Transition Index reveals that 7% of Quebec businesses have an index of 71 and above; 11% between 50 and 70; 21% between 31 and 49; 25% between 20 and 30, and 35% below 20. While the Transition Index highlights the scale of the challenges, this second Barometer outlines the winning conditions for progressing towards a low-carbon economy.

"Thanks to the Barometer and the new Transition Index, it is now possible to track the progress of climate actions by businesses across Quebec, from the smallest to the largest, including SMEs. The results reveal concrete avenues to help companies successfully engage in the major economic transformation currently underway," says Anne-Josée Laquerre, Executive Director & Co-Founder, Quebec Net Positive.

Key highlights:

• Organizational culture and human factor are fundamental to a successful transition.
  This component carries the most weight in explaining the implementation of climate actions within businesses. Compared to the average Transition Index of 32.4, the average Index is significantly higher in companies that rely on the following factors:
  • Internal or external environmental expertise (58.2), compared to the index of companies that do not rely on such expertise (25.0)
  • Committed management team (41.3), aware of risks (39.0), and especially aware of the benefits and business opportunities of the transition (42.8)
  • Committed board of directors (49.6), aware of risks (47.1), and aware of the benefits and business opportunities of the transition (49.1)
    
    
• Customers are the main source of pressure prompting companies to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions (33%), a significant increase compared to 18% in 2022.
  
  
• The two most important triggers for corporate climate action are the concerns and ideas of employees and managers, on a par with the global environmental situation/climate crisis (35%).
  
  
• Business leaders are more aware of the impacts and risks of climate change and the accelerating transition to a low-carbon economy. Risk perception has almost doubled in 2023, with 23% of respondents stating that climate change and the acceleration of the transition present a great deal or quite a bit of risk compared to 12% in 2022.
  
  
• The gap between willingness and climate actions implementation persists.
  While 82% of business leaders believe it is urgent to reduce GHG emissions, 68% feel well-equipped to act, and 57% say they are implementing at least one climate action within their operations.
  
  
• Among climate actions implemented in the operations, the study reveals an upward trend in the optimization of energy management (30% vs. 22%) as well as transport optimization (29% vs. 22%). These aspects constitute the two most significant sources of greenhouse gas emissions in the Quebec economy.

"Climate change and its social and economic impacts are without a doubt one of the most important issues of our time. Our economy and businesses must adapt to new realities, and in order to do so, they need reliable data to measure their progress and the evolution of their strategy. The Quebec Net Positive barometer is therefore an essential tool. At BMO, supporting our customers and the entire Quebec economic ecosystem in this transition is a priority. So it was only natural for us to support this project.''
Grégoire Baillargeon, President, BMO Financial Group, Quebec

Quebec Net Positive thanks its partners: BMO and Investissement Québec; its collaborators: Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC), Cascades, Hydro-Québec, and PME Montréal Est-de-l'Ile; as well as Fonds de solidarité FTQ and the experts from CASACOM, Ciblexpert, and Futur Simple for their support.

Webinar ? Discover the results, November 15th, noon: Register here

Download: Annex ? Detailed Highlights, 2023 Barometer infographic and report 

To learn more about our sectoral and regional Barometers: see our resources 

Quebec Net Positive is an independent not for profit think tank whose purpose is to accelerate the transition to a low-carbon and "net positive" economy. Supported by the McConnell Foundation, its mission is to raise awareness, mobilize and equip businesses to seize new business opportunities, go beyond mitigating risks, and activate their full potential to create positive impacts on society and the environment. Home | Quebec Net Positive

SOURCE Québec Net Positif