Financial Profiles Adds Leigh Ann Johnson to Lead its ESG & Sustainability Practice
Leigh Ann Johnston One of Global Top 100 Women in Sustainability
Financial Profiles Bolsters ESG Practice With Addition of Recognized Sustainability Expert
Financial Profiles, a strategic communications firm that creates value for public and private companies through effective communication, announced that Leigh Ann Johnston has joined the agency as Senior Vice President to lead its Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) and Sustainability practice.
Johnston has more than 20 years of experience developing and implementing sustainability strategy and related efforts for Tyson Foods, a Fortune 100 company. Sustainability Magazine recently named Johnston to its first list of Global Top 100 Women in Sustainability.
“We are thrilled to have someone with Leigh Ann’s expertise and experience join our team to assist our clients’ ESG efforts. We have seen growing demand for ESG counsel and program support from both current and prospective clients as investors increasingly understand that strong ESG practices and an all-stakeholder approach to managing a business helps mitigate risk and create value. Companies of all sizes now recognize that strong ESG practices are a critical advantage in competing for capital, talent, customers, acquisition partners and other stakeholders,” said Moira Conlon, Financial Profiles’ President and Founder.
In her previous role, Johnston developed programs, metrics and targets to ensure sustainability strategies and goals were met and advised on sustainability trends and stakeholder expectations. She partnered with key internal and external stakeholder groups to support the organization’s sustainability strategies and to help meet the increasing consumer demand for more sustainably produced products. Before many companies had begun to incorporate ESG practices into their businesses, Johnston was leading the development of annual sustainability reports and other ESG communications, having produced reports as early as 2005.
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“I’m excited to join Financial Profiles and look forward to helping our clients build their ESG communications programs, which can seem daunting or even overwhelming to many,” Leigh Ann Johnston said. “Based on my many years of experience launching ESG initiatives from the ground up, I have walked in their shoes, and I want to guide our clients through a process that helps them achieve their objectives in an enlightening rather than painful way. I am privileged to have been at the forefront of evolving ESG communications and firmly believe that an all-stakeholder approach to managing a company creates sustainable value for all types of organizations.”
Johnston, a graduate of the University of North Georgia, served as the chair of the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Poultry and Eggs and was a representative on the Global Reporting Initiatives Food Processing Sector Supplement Work.
