New Sustainability-focused consultancy Foresight opens its doors
Foresight, a new Australian-owned sustainability-focused consultancy, has opened its doors in Australia.
The company, founded and directed by Joshua Martin (formerly of EY and ENGIE Impact), aims to bridge the “considerable gap in the Australian market for a dedicated climate change and sustainability group” that can cater to the growing demand for advisory and assurance services.
“Foresight will look to fill this gap, and a client-centric and agile way of working is the foundation. We want to do things differently not just to be different, but because that’s what we know the market needs and what our clients want.”
Martin most recently was a Senior Director at ENGIE Impact, where he helped the firm establish itself as one of the top sustainability consulting firms in Australia in just 18 months.
Prior to his role at ENGIE Impact, Martin was the Oceania leader of EY’s Climate Change sub-service line where he led the development of the global approaches to climate strategy and risk while playing a crucial role in the growth of the firm’s non-financial assurance services. Earlier he served Net Balance, a start-up that grew into one of Australia’s largest pure-play climate change and sustainability consultancies before its 2014 acquisition by EY.
Foresight launches with four staff on board (and six open positions) and already has a number of clients on board, including two in the ASX 50. The firm
The firm’s services span Consulting, Assurance and Impact Capital, the latter which aims to drive impact by connecting financial capital to sustainability projects.
“The firm’s focus will be on providing greater access to seasoned and experienced professionals, a more personal and bespoke service offering, developing new and innovative approaches to solutions, and a highly customer centric and agile way of working,” Martin explained.
The firm also has a dedicated not-for-profit, Foresight Lab, with a stated mission to drive innovation in sustainability. Martin said that 20% of Foresight employee time will be dedicated to innovation projects. “In consulting, innovation often falls by the wayside in favour of driving higher profits through a focus on established services and solutions. To really have impact, the boundaries on what is possible need to be pushed.”
“Foresight is about more than profit. We are about purpose. We want our legacy to be that of meaningful change in the pursuit of sustainability. To truly know if we are delivering, we must measure and track that,” said Martin. “By focussing on impact, Foresight’s success is intrinsically tied to the success of our clients and their positive impact.”
