Michael Houghton
2020 Nobel Laureate in Physiology or Medicine | Discoverer of Hepatitis C Virus | Li Ka Shing Professor of Virology, University of Alberta
George Serafeim
Charles M. Williams Professor, Harvard Business School | Pioneer of ESG Strategy | Named One of the Most Influential People in ESG Investing by Barron's
George Serafeim is the Harvard Business School professor who helped build ESG into a rigorous academic and business discipline. Named by Barron's as one of the most influential people in ESG investing and cited nearly 49,000 times on Google Scholar, he co-leads HBS's Climate and Sustainability Impact Lab and advises Fortune 500 boards on turning sustainability from compliance exercise into competitive strategy.
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George Serafeim biography
George Serafeim is the Charles M. Williams Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School — one of the youngest faculty members to receive tenure at the institution — and a leading architect of how the world understands, measures, and acts on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) issues in business. His research helped lay the empirical foundations of the ESG field at a time when non-financial metrics were considered irrelevant by most of the investment community, and the Financial Times has described his work as a turning point for companies and investment managers in integrating ESG into business and investment strategy.
Sustainability speaker George Serafeim co-founded KKS Advisors in 2013, a consultancy that applies rigorous academic research to help organizations build effective ESG strategies, working directly with boards, C-suites, and institutional investors across more than 60 countries. He also co-founded Richmond Global Sciences, a technology firm that translates his Impact-Weighted Accounts methodology into an AI-assisted platform, enabling investors and corporates to quantify the real social and environmental impacts of thousands of companies. Serafeim has furthermore been named by Barron’s as one of the most influential people in ESG investing and ranks among the top ten most cited business authors on the Social Science Research Network, with nearly 49,000 citations on Google Scholar. His research has been published in the Strategic Management Journal, the Journal of Finance, and the Harvard Business Review, and he has presented his findings at the World Economic Forum in Davos, the Aspen Ideas Festival, White House business leadership conferences, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, and the European Commission.
From ESG Foundations to the Climate and AI Frontier
Serafeim currently co-leads the Climate and Sustainability Impact Lab within Harvard’s Digital, Data, and Design Institute, where his research applies generative AI and data science to analyze the diffusion and business consequences of transformative technologies — from electric vehicles and battery storage to circular economy solutions. He teaches the MBA course “Risks, Opportunities, and Investments in an Era of Climate Change” (ROICC), and previously co-taught “Reimagining Capitalism: Business and Big Problems,” which received both the Aspen Institute’s Ideas Worth Teaching Award and the Grand Page Prize. He created the Impact-Weighted Accounts Project at HBS — the most rigorous methodology to date for quantifying how companies create or erode value for society — and co-founded the International Foundation for Valuing Impacts. He also serves on the board of Liberty Mutual, a Fortune 100 company, and chairs Greece’s Corporate Governance Council. His book, Purpose + Profit: How Business Can Lift Up the World (HarperCollins, 2022), translates two decades of research into an executive framework for building purpose-driven organizations that deliver measurable financial and social returns.
As a speaker, George Serafeim brings something rare to the stage: the intellectual depth of a Harvard researcher combined with the operational fluency of a board director and practitioner. His talks go well beyond the ESG compliance conversation — challenging senior audiences to rethink business strategy through the lens of impact, competitive differentiation, and long-term value creation. Executives and investors leave with a concrete analytical framework for navigating the intersection of sustainability, AI, and financial performance in a period of accelerating transition.
George Serafeim Speaking Videos
George Serafeim: Reimagining Capitalism - performance, purpose, and ESG issues
Professor George Serafeim, Harvard Business School at Impact Future Project
George Serafeim Keynote Topics
Drawing directly on his book and two decades of field research across more than 60 countries, Serafeim shows how the world's highest-performing companies are generating superior financial returns precisely because they have integrated environmental and social performance into their core business models — not despite it. This keynote dismantles the false trade-off between doing good and doing well, and gives executives a practical framework for identifying which ESG issues are financially material for their industry, allocating resources accordingly, and measuring outcomes rather than effort.
Serafeim's most current research sits at the intersection of sustainability and artificial intelligence — using generative AI and large-scale data analysis to identify the companies best positioned to profit from the climate transition. This forward-looking keynote explores how AI is transforming ESG analytics, which sectors face the steepest transition risks and where the largest opportunities lie, and how executives and investors can use emerging data tools to make faster, better-informed strategic decisions. An essential session for boards, investment committees, and innovation leaders.
Based on the Aspen Institute award-winning HBS course he designed, this keynote challenges leaders to think at the systems level — asking not just how to manage ESG risk, but how to build business models that address structural challenges in climate, health, inequality, and urban development at scale. Serafeim presents a framework for how companies can move from compliance, through efficiency, to genuine innovation — and why the organizations that make that leap are consistently outperforming peers on both impact and shareholder returns.
For decades, balance sheets have failed to capture what companies truly cost — and create — for society. Serafeim presents the methodologies developed through Harvard's Impact-Weighted Accounts Project, which quantify a company's environmental footprint, product impact, and employment practices in financial terms. This session gives CFOs, investors, and strategy teams the tools to integrate impact into valuation, reporting, and capital allocation decisions — and explains why regulators, institutional investors, and major corporates are rapidly moving in this direction.
Employees have a powerful role when it comes to influencing how their company treats people and the environment. It is not enough for organizations to achieve revenue goals. They must protect valuable resources, people and the planet. A company can still profit while operating with purpose and employees can act as stewards with their own actions – and by holding their organizations accountable. The good news is that firms have an incentive to “do good” because strategically implementing environmental, social and governance (ESG) initiatives creates value. In addition, investors, boards and regulators are increasingly measuring the value of a company based on ESG performance. In this presentation, Harvard Business School Professor George Serafeim, one of the world’s foremost authorities on ESG investing, outlines ways purpose-driven employees can play a vital role in helping their company boost ESG performance in the ongoing “race to the top” so they can profit while serving society.
Speaker topics
FAQs on Booking George Serafeim
Why George Serafeim?
Booking George Serafeim means bringing to your event the academic who helped create the intellectual infrastructure of ESG — not a commentator, but one of its original architects. He has presented his research at Davos, the White House, the SEC, and the European Commission. Barron's named him one of the most influential people in ESG investing. His Harvard courses have received the Aspen Institute's highest teaching honor. And unlike most academics, he brings direct board-level experience at a Fortune 100 company and co-founded a leading ESG advisory practice with a global client base. For organizations navigating the intersection of sustainability, AI, and financial performance, there is no more authoritative voice in the world. Contact Aurum Speakers Bureau to check George Serafeim's availability for your event.
What is George Serafeim's research focus?
Serafeim's research sits at the intersection of corporate strategy, ESG performance measurement, and, increasingly, artificial intelligence. His foundational work established which ESG metrics are financially material by industry — a framework now used by institutional investors worldwide. His Impact-Weighted Accounts Project at Harvard developed the first rigorous methodology for translating a company's social and environmental performance into monetary terms, enabling comparison across firms and sectors. His most recent work uses AI and data science to track the adoption of climate solutions technologies, analyze transition risk, and identify the business models best positioned to generate returns in a decarbonizing economy.
What is the book Purpose + Profit about?
Published in 2022 by HarperCollins Leadership, Purpose + Profit: How Business Can Lift Up the World translates Serafeim's two decades of research into a practical guide for executives, managers, investors, and entrepreneurs. The book draws on more than 50 research papers and field studies to argue that the most durable competitive advantages are increasingly built on the alignment of business performance and social impact. It presents six archetypes of value creation that integrate ESG into strategy, and explains why companies that treat sustainability as a core business issue — rather than a compliance or reputation exercise — consistently outperform peers on long-term financial metrics.
What topics does sustainability speaker George Serafeim cover?
George Serafeim speaks on ESG strategy and implementation, purpose-driven business models, impact measurement and accounting, climate transition risk and opportunity, corporate governance, and the intersection of AI and sustainability. His keynotes are grounded in peer-reviewed research and field-tested frameworks used by the world's leading corporations, investment firms, and governments. He is an ideal choice for investor summits, CEO and board-level forums, sustainability leadership conferences, and executive education programs. Reach out to Aurum Speakers Bureau to discuss how George Serafeim's keynote can be tailored to your audience and strategic priorities.
How to book George Serafeim as a keynote speaker?
Aurum Speakers Bureau can help you book George Serafeim as a speaker for your next event, conference, or board meeting. Simply fill out our contact form to inquire about George Serafeim's availability for a speaking engagement. One of our booking agents will respond to your request immediately and contact the speaker to let them know you want to hire them. We will assist you with obtaining speaking fees, booking information, and confirming availability for George Serafeim or any other top keynote speaker or celebrity of your choice.
How much is George Serafeim speaking fee?
George Serafeim speaking fees are determined by several factors, including the event's date, whether it's a virtual or in-person event, the duration, format, preparation required for their speech, and more. The same applies to the cost to hire any other top expert speakers and celebrities. The Speaker Fee Range listed on our website is simply a guideline and is subject to change without notice. If you would like to hire George Serafeim to deliver a keynote speech for your event, please fill out the contact form or email us at info@aurumbureau.com with as much detail as possible. One of our experienced agents will get in touch with you and let you know exactly how much it will cost to book George Serafeim.
How can I contact George Serafeim?
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Can I book George Serafeim for a virtual keynote?
Yes, George Serafeim is available for virtual keynotes and webinars. To book George Serafeim for a virtual event, please complete the contact form or send us an email to inquire about the special fees for virtual engagements.
