Leading Provider of ESG Software, Data and Consulting Services taps two executives: a former chief sustainability officer at GM and an executive vice president at Thomson Reuters.
CHICAGO, IL (January 26, 2022) – Sphera®, a leading global provider of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) performance and risk management software, data and consulting services, today announced that it has expanded its board of directors with the addition of two new board members as part of the company’s strategic growth efforts.
Sphera’s board of directors oversees the company’s aggressive growth plans. The addition of Dane Parker and Mark Schlageter brings extensive sustainability and risk expertise to round out the board. This additional expertise will be valuable to ensuring Sphera’s board members have the collective knowledge and experience necessary to oversee Sphera’s continued expansion and innovation in the ESG solutions space.
As the former chief sustainability officer at General Motors Co. (GM), Dane Parker brings the experience of being the first chief sustainability officer at one of the largest auto manufacturers in the world and creating its goals for its sustainability journey. Parker has extensive experience in sustainability and setting carbon neutral and zero-emissions targets. He was a driving force behind GM’s plan to become carbon neutral by 2040 and aspiration to have zero emissions from all new light-duty vehicles by 2035. Prior to GM, Parker was vice president, Global Environment, Health and Safety (EHS), Real Estate, and Facilities for Dell Inc. where he established the Global EHS team and achieved world-class results in both safety and environmental performance.
As the first chief customer officer at Thomson Reuters, Mark Schlageter transformed the company culture to true top-line performance and facilitated the company’s growth and expansion with a customer-centric mindset. Schlageter has extensive experience over multiple decades growing B2B technology businesses and portfolios organically, through acquisitions, and through platform leverage to facilitate unprecedented revenue and profit gains. Schlageter built his career at Thomson Reuters where he was repeatedly called upon to turn around, scale and accelerate growth in multiple businesses. While Thomson Reuters chief customer officer, Schlageter was charged with transforming the company into a true top-line performance culture supported by a stronger sales, retention and marketing focus. Schlageter has served as the Blackstone Senior Advisor charged with GRC strategy development and execution since 2017.
“We are excited by this period of continued growth in the ESG space globally,” said Paul Marushka, Sphera’s CEO and president. “The addition of board members with the caliber of experience Dane Parker and Mark Schlageter bring in sustainability and governance, risk and compliance respectively will be a tremendous asset for the board. Their well-rounded background and experience will be of utmost importance as the board oversees our efforts in helping our customers meet their ESG and risk goals and in advancing our mission of creating a safer, more sustainable and productive world.”
Spanning over 80 countries with more than 3,000 customers, Sphera supports businesses globally to manage and mitigate ESG risk through its software as a service solution (SaaS) and consulting services. Sphera’s innovative software, information and expert-driven insights empower organizations to protect their people, assets and communities. Sphera’s acquisition by Blackstone, one of the world’s leading investment firms, was completed in September 2021 in a transaction that values the company at $1.4 billion. This partnership and capital injection has facilitated Sphera’s continued growth to help cement its position as a leader in the ESG space.
About Sphera
Sphera is the leading provider of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) performance and risk management software, data and consulting services focusing on Environment, Health, Safety & Sustainability (EHS&S), Operational Risk Management and Product Stewardship. Learn more about Sphera at www.sphera.com. Follow Sphera on LinkedIn.
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