ENVIRONMENTAL & SOCIAL GOVERNANCE
CoStar Group is committed to building and maintaining a foundation on responsible environmental, social and governance practices that drive value for our people, communities and shareholders.Our Commitment
Transformation and Empowerment
Moving us forward
Operational Efficiency
We are committed to developing resilience and efficiencies into our workplaces to conserve resources and use energy responsibly.
- CoStar Group locates offices in buildings that are LEED certified or Energy/Star rated.
- CoStar Group's Field Research fleet is comprised of eco-friendly electric and hybrid vehicles.
- The corporate headquarters and larger corporate offices provide an open work environment, utilizing daylight that harvests technology to control light levels — optimizing energy savings.
- Mass transit subsidies are provided to employees to utilize public transportation, reducing CO2 emissions.
Sustainability
Protecting the future of our planet is at the heart of our sustainability efforts at CoStar Group.
- Healthy habits for our employees are supported with the elimination of vending machines, stocking pantries and kitchens that provide healthy snacks and organic fruits and vegetables.
- Our workspaces are outfitted with water coolers that use 3-level reverse osmosis filtrations, eliminating plastic bottle waste.
- All company computer equipment is Energy Star rated and utilizes automated power controls to drive energy efficiency.
- Green roof gardens are used in the corporate headquarters to minimize heat gain by capturing rain run-off.
Industry stewardship
CoStar, our subscription-based integrated platform for commercial real estate intelligence, provides users with green rating certifications on buildings.
- Customers can identify properties that are Energy Star, BREEAM, and LEED certified.
- Users can also add Flood Risk layers to any map search to assess potential risks associated with a property.
- With CoStar News, subscribers receive news coverage on sustainability and leadership in healthy building environments.
- 100% of CoStar subscribers have access to green rating sustainability data.
By the numbers:
1.4M
square feet LEED and/or Energy Star rated planned and occupied office space
830+
MTCO2e amount of carbon emissions saved with our efficient vehicles
6 Tons
of equipment recycled in the past two years
50%
of electricity consumed at our colocated data centers came from renewable energy sources
Data through December 2022
Celebrating Diversity
We believe that a diverse and inclusive workplace leads to performance and innovation, strengthening the company's ability to grow with impact.
Through programming and Employee Resource Groups ERG, we provide opportunities to engage and contribute to the employee experience. Our ERGs create avenues for mentoring and professional development within communities as well as education and awareness across the organization.
- Black Excellence Network
- Latinx Network
- Pride Network
- Veterans Network
- Women in Tech Network
- Women's Network
Social Wellbeing
Building employee affinity with employee resource groups, mentoring and strong educational and health benefit programs help to foster a collaborative and healthy work environment.
- Our future relies on our people to build and create the solutions that transform our industry. Through on-line enterprise partnerships, and comprehensive product training, our employees have access to more than 14,000 courses.
- In 2022, CoStar Group has partnered with the University of Virginia's Darden Executive Education School to offer experiential leadership development programs.
- CoStar Group provides industry-leading pay and benefits to attract and retain talent. With a variety of affordable health care options, employees can choose what works best for them and their families.
- Employee health is a priority. By providing a comprehensive wellness program that incorporates technology, incentives, and personalization, we contribute to the wellbeing of our employees.
Through purposeful investment and employee engagement, volunteerism and strong partnerships, CoStar Group works with dozens of organizations to help improve, sustain, and brighten the lives of those in need. Volunteerism and giving areas include Education, Housing, Environment & Sustainability, and Social & Community Equity.
CoStar Group Builds
CoStar Group Builds is the volunteer arm of the company. Employees work together to better the lives of their fellow citizens and support the communities in which they live and work.
- Since the inception of CoStar Group Builds, more than 11,400 volunteer hours have been tracked.
- In 2022, CoStar Group donated more than $3 million to more than 50 partners across the US, Canada, and the UK.
Changing Lives with Education
For more than 5 years, CoStar Group has supported the Management Leadership for Tomorrow, a national non-profit that provides educational resources to high achievers in underrepresented communities. With a $1 million annual contribution each year for 5 years, we are committed to further support Black, Latinx, and Native American students to realize their full potential, to make a mark, and make a difference. MLT bridges the critical college-to-career transition gap and ensures their fellows succeed in that “last mile” to post-college careers.
In 2020, CoStar Group invested $300,000 in the Virginia Ready Initiative (VA Ready), a new program to help unemployed Virginians get back to work in response to the COVID- 19 pandemic’s impact on unemployment. As a strategic partner, CoStar Group is also providing input on offerings and curricula to VA Ready’s Talent Task Force with the Virginia Community College System and is participating in the VA Ready Job Exchange, providing job interviews to VA Ready Scholars.
In 2021 CoStar Group contributed nearly $300,000 to support Technology, Engineering, and Business programs with local universities. These partnerships included workshops, mentorship programs, hackathons, and project-based learning initiatives.
Security and Business Continuity
Our proprietary data, customer base and technical expertise are critical to our business growth. The retention of this data and information requires rigorous enterprise-wide data security, and we take this seriously by engaging in annual SOC 1 and SOC 2 audits. Additionally, the company has invested in a robust cybersecurity program to protect information against any risk of accidental, unlawful, or unauthorized destruction.
IP Protection and Data Privacy
Privacy protection is a priority for our company, and we have established measures for protecting employee and customer information in compliance with privacy laws, safeguarding the information that is entrusted to us. Corporate practices include:
- 100% employee participation in annual Ethics and Code of Conduct training and certifications.
- 100% employee participation in training on modern slavery and human trafficking policies.
- Incident response, training and awareness.
- Up to date Global Privacy Notices on all CoStar Group websites.
Governance
CoStar Group has adopted corporate governance that outlines the roles and composition of the Board of Directors to include roles, size and composition of membership. This can be found in our Corporate Governance Documents.
The company has furthered its commitment to diversity by amending its Principle of Corporate Governance to provide that when identifying, screening, recruiting and recommending candidates to the Board of Directors, the Nominating & Corporate Governance Committee is committed to including in each search qualified candidates who reflect diverse backgrounds, including diversity of gender and race.
