On average, C-level of natively green companies score higher than transitioning companies but suffer from a lack of overall visibility.
Green companies by default should score higher on the Positive Influence Score. While that holds true, and while on average natively green companies score higher both in Total Score and Positive Influence Score, only five of their C-levels make the top 20 of the Index. This is mainly due to the fact that they have not yet developed the critically relevant reach (visibility and engagement) for their LinkedIn profiles, in all likelihood preventing them from truly influencing debates. Considering that "positive influence" topics are generating growing interest in the public, natively green companies should increase efforts to garner broad support for their mission. As an immediate win, content partnerships between transforming companies and natively green companies could drive growth in both community size and engagement for both parties.
Size matters, content matters - there is not one single indicator that outweighs all others.
JIN's Positive Influence Index attempts to quantify and qualify digital leadership by assessing communication performance through a green-sustainable lens. It may be tempting to assert straight away that a good C-level performance is always the result of a communication plan that integrates key socio-environmental considerations at its core, however, we have to be nuanced and avoid fast conclusions: In this index, there are several examples that show that it is possible for C-levels to generate strong engagement and communication impact without having to dedicate a substantial part of their editorial lines to green topics.
Likewise, exclusively green and sustainability-aware editorial lines do not automatically translate into good performance, as several examples in our index prove. Community size is a key aspect of impact on social media, and must not be overlooked. Digital communication is one thing; socio-environmental awareness is another. Both have their own codes that need to be understood, adapted and mastered in order to generate visible performance. It is at the intersection of both digital communication and socio-environmental awareness that C-levels need to find their spot in.