Strategic steps organizations can take to prepare for tomorrow’s climate change risks today

Every day, executives must make decisions that have long-term implications for the business, all while facing a host of unknowns, especially when it comes to preparing for potential climate change risks. 

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Unpredictable, intense weather is already impacting businesses worldwide. We see this with the heavy rains and flooding that forced a U.S. baby formula plant to halt production and the extreme heat that’s sapping worker productivity in cities like Athens, New Delhi, Miami, and Los Angeles.  

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With extreme weather projected to increase, some companies are in a better position to adapt and navigate the uncertainty than others. They have more data at their disposal—and not just data to satisfy investors and regulators for disclosure and regulation purposes. They also have granular climate risk data about their owned assets and broader supply chain. They’re using this data to guide portfolio planning, improve processes, and drive business value. As a result, they’re better able to act with foresight and move with agility.

What Sets Climate Resilient Companies Apart from Those with Greater Climate Change Risks

A new framework from the experts at Jupiter, the leader in climate risk analytics, paints a clear picture of what advanced businesses are doing to become more informed and future-proof their organizations. Developed based on Jupiter’s analysis of how companies all over the globe approach climate risk, The Climate Resilience Maturity Index can be used as a guide to evaluate organizations’ climate change preparedness on a scale of 1 to 5:

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• Levels 1 and 2 (Novice and Intermediate): Have limited climate-risk-related practices and processes in place but are considering making climate resilience a strategic priority
• Level 3 (Committed): Are becoming climate-data aware and are starting to adopt climate risk management practices
• Levels 4 and 5 (Advanced and Cutting Edge): Understand the value of climate change risk data and are incorporating risk analysis and insights across the business

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Here are the factors that differentiate Level 4 and 5 companies.

1. More C-level stakeholders are involved, including the COO/CFO, chief risk officer, chief sustainability officer, chief climate officer, and potentially even the CEO and board of directors.

2. Internal motivation is high: These businesses are focused on the value of climate resilience and are making it a company-wide priority.

3. Partnering with climate risk analytics providers is critical to success at this stage. Best-in-science climate analytics providers empower organizations with actionable data tailored to the business to ensure a faster time to insight and to enable operational and financial resilience.

4. There’s a focus not only on collecting the right data, but also on acting on the data. Advanced companies leverage climate change risk analytics to inform short-term decisions to safeguard the business and to drive longer-term strategies for growth.

5. Climate risk data is leveraged for a wide variety of use cases, including data and regulation, risk opportunity assessment and resilience planning, portfolio planning, supply chain analysis, and enterprise-risk analysis.

6. Physical climate risk data and analysis are incorporated into broader business analytics and business intelligence tools to guide key processes and decision-making within business units and across the entire enterprise. 

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Advanced and cutting-edge companies are already seeing the benefits of investing in climate resilience. They’re getting a leg up on the competition and are poised to anticipate the severe weather events that are expected to impact businesses in the coming years.

What Your Company Can Do to Become More Climate Resilient

Jupiter’s leading eBook, The Climate Resilience Maturity Index, reveals what steps companies can take to mitigate against climate change risks and embrace resilience. Get your copy and find out how to leverage climate analytics for value creation, a competitive advantage, and growth. 

[Download the eBook]