With a h/t to R. Paul Herman, FSA and the folks at AquaFin, I found myself pondering the ESG qualities of Santa Clause. ESG or Environmental, Social, and Governance is a system by which a company can be analyzed. It is complimentary to traditional financial analysis. It can help an analyst or investor better understand how a company might perform and correspondingly whether an investment is warranted.
Assuming that Santa Clause, Inc. is a company, I am first impressed with the "E" factor. Santa manages to travel great distances with minimal carbon footprint. One can only imagine the carbon output Santa would have if he were trying to make the trip on a plane!
But what do we make of the "E" factor as you look at all the new toys made each year? Might up-cycling and recycling be better? Then again, does the audience (us!) really want used gifts?
On the "S" side of things, one might think Santa Clause, Inc. is doing quite well. He seems to treat the elves decently. Then again, there are no recorded complaints from the elves. Also, Santa seems to be the only employer in the North Pole. This might be worth looking into.
As to "G" for governance, what are the ethics of Santa Clause, Inc. like? Is there a Board of Directors that Santa answers to? Are the toys being made responsibly/ sourced ethically? Is Santa using the best quality products?
In any case, a very Merry Christmas to all of you.