At a time when ESG commitments face more scrutiny than ever, enterprise leaders need a trusted space to speak candidly, test ideas, and learn from one another. That’s exactly what more than 100 ESG, sustainability, and social impact executives found in Chicago at the 2025 ESG & CSR Practitioner Summit.
Hosted by the ESG & CSR Board, this invitation-only gathering brought together senior leaders from the world’s largest companies for two days of unfiltered conversations, practical strategies, and peer-driven solutions to the toughest challenges in responsible business.
Here’s a look at the moments that sparked the most insight and why this community continues to be an essential resource for leaders driving impact at scale.
ESG and CSR vendors: What are we using, what works, and what doesn’t?
We kicked off day one with something you won’t find at a typical conference: a peer-led vendor clinic.
As a vendor-free community, the ESG & CSR Pracitioner Summit offers a rare chance to dig into what’s working, what isn’t, and how peers are finding creative workarounds with the platforms that power their programs.
In Chicago, the conversation centered on some of the most widely used tools in ESG and corporate responsibility, like Workiva, Benevity, Persefoni, Bonterra/CyberGrants, and more.
Member-led Panel: Leading ESG & CSR in a polarized, politicized environment
Leaders joined a panel on one of today’s toughest challenges: advancing ESG and CSR work in a polarized, politicized environment. With regulations, expectations, and risks shifting quickly, panelists shared candid strategies for safeguarding programs and preparing for the future. The conversation featured veteran ESG & CSR Board members:
- John Mulcahy, Vice President of Stewardship at Georgia-Pacific
- Elizabeth Okey, Vice President of Community Impact at Wintrust
- Andrea Davis, AVP and Regional Engagement Manager at Z Zurich Foundation
Actionable Case Studies
We explored 10 confidential case studies led by senior ESG and CSR leaders. In these 20-minute sessions with Q&A, peers shared unfiltered successes and setbacks:
- Beyond spend: A better way to lead supplier engagement – led by Jeff Freeman at Cimpress
- Measuring what matters: Turning employee giving into a strategic business driver – led by Kelly Kondry at Motorola Solutions
- Building a company-wide culture of sustainability knowledge + action – led by Jim Close at Owens Corning
- Winning at community collaboration: TD Bank’s Housing Summit – led by Paige Carlson-Heim at TD Bank
- Making water and energy sustainability a manufacturing priority – led by Rachel Grunberg at The Hershey Company
- When speed matters: Building a smarter disaster response strategy – led by Katy Phillips at American Airlines
- Managing raters and rankers: Driving internal alignment without chasing perfect scores – led by Wyeth Larson at Avery Dennison
- Making volunteerism the heart of your talent development vision – led by Sam Cammarata at NBCUniversal
- Dialing in your decarbonization plan in an uncertain landscape – led by Joe McMahan at Maple Leaf Foods
- Cracking the code: Cisco’s journey to 80% global engagement and unlocking business value – led by Kelly Petrich at Cisco
Practitioner-led Workshops
- Understanding ESG regulations for your company and your team – led by Stacy Cline at GitLab
- Gen Z and authentic engagement: How do you get it right? – led by Brandon Ruffin at CDW
- Leveraging environmental volunteerism for impact and operational wins – led by Paul Pellizzari and Christina Guerron-Orejuela at Hard Rock International
- The future of voluntary ESG reporting – led by Maren Stunes at Amgen
- Collaborating as corporate funders: Doing more with more – led by Kate Barrett at The Campbell’s Company
- Leading lean teams: Delivering more with less – led by Courtney Vandermause at Farmers Insurance
- Building sustainability teams that can win – led by Lorie Mills and Corey Clark at Toyota
- A truly “impactful” gift, or just more corporate hype? – led by Patrice Withers at Fifth Third Bank
- Making the case: Showing the value of sustainability and social impact – led by Katie Leone at Herc Rentals
- Can AI make ESG easier? – led by Jeff Rangel at Intuit
- Communicating social impact with clarity and credibility – led by Jacqueline Boas at New Balance Athletics
- Leading CSR through major corporate change – led by Amanda Schmitt at CenterPoint Energy
Peer Advisory Roundtables
Unlike traditional conference formats with pre-set agendas, these dynamic, interactive discussions were shaped entirely by attendees.
Participants suggested the topics they cared about most, voted in real time, and joined the conversations that resonated with their current challenges. This peer-driven format ensured every roundtable was timely, relevant, and rooted in the real-world experiences of ESG and CSR leaders. Here are some of the topics members unpacked:
- “Big Beautiful Bill”: Implications for corporate philanthropy?
- California Climate Bills: Making it to January 1
- Aligning philanthropy with business objectives
- ESG: What are investors asking for now?
- The future of social impact roles
- Marketing ESG and sustainability as a revenue driver versus a cost center
Join the Conversation
The best on-site discussions will grow into in-depth community conversations in the coming weeks and months as we dig deeper into these challenges together.
And don’t miss the chance to be in the room for our next in-person gathering. ESG & CSR Board members will gather again March 1–3 in Denver at the North American Sustainability & Responsibility Summit (NASRS).
