‘Core’ is where you build resilience.

Context: Sustainability is no longer about goodwill - it is about resilience and business continuity. Environmental and social risks now directly affect asset protection, supply chains, and the ability to operate in a climate-disrupted world.

Why ‘core’: ‘Core’ refers to proactive risk management, accountability, strategic disclosures, strong governance, and focused operations. These are the building blocks upon which long-term resilience, sustainable value creation, and stakeholder trust are built. Companies that embed sustainability in the ‘core’ early, gain competitive advantage.

Race against time: Starting now means you are building adaptive capacity while you have options, resources, and time. Wait, and you will make desperate, expensive decisions under pressure with limited choices.

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Our Services

Risk Management and Strategic Foresight

  • Materiality insights shaping strategy

  • ESG regulatory horizon scan

  • Pragmatic regulatory strategy

  • Beyond compliance & points of differentiation

Sustainability Disclosures

  • Disclosure strategy development

  • Reporting against ESG regulations and voluntary frameworks

  • Impact-led reports and communications

  • Data quality, AI, and assurance readiness

Corporate Governance and Accountability

  • Senior execs engagement

  • Governance Committees & Board prep

  • Cross-functional ESG governance mechanisms

  • Regulatory trends - executive briefings

Operationalising Sustainability

  • Practical controls & mitigations for IROs

  • Regulatory requirements - functional training

  • Anti-greenwashing - functional training

  • Benchmarking and defining ambition levels

Sustainability Readiness for SMEs

  • Awareness sessions

  • Setting the ESG basics - approach, governance, reporting

  • Responding to supply chain requests

  • Responding to investor requests

Who We Are

Sustainability is a rapidly evolving strategic priority. In a noisy environment, long-term success depends on strong fundamentals. A clearly defined ‘core’ provides direction, sharpens the focus, enables early risk identification, and turns theory into action. This is why CoreWorks was established - to help you focus on getting the foundations right.

Our Founder

Our founder, Elena Zayakova, spent the last 20 years future-proofing businesses at the intersection of strategy, sustainability, governance, and regulation. Her approach is focused, pragmatic, and proportionate.

Over the last two decades, Elena approached sustainability and business resilience from several different perspectives – as a researcher, as a management consultant, as a strategist, as an in-house expert in a FTSE 100 business.

She had worked from Bulgaria to UK, and from North America to multiple countries in the Middle East & North Africa, leading teams and award-winning work, and building a solid network of global sustainability experts.

Elena was named among the 50 Leading Bulgarians in the UK Tech Industry in 2025 – an initiative led by the Bulgarian Angels Club, Bulgarian British Chamber of Commerce, and the Embassy of Republic of Bulgaria in London.

Education and Certifications:

Elena graduated from University of Leeds, UK with a MSc in Sustainability - Environment & Development, and from Sofia University St. Kliment Ohridski with MSc in Environmental Biotechnology and BSc in Ecology & Environmental Protection. Certifications include: Integrated Reporting, ACCA; AI for Business Transformation, Imperial College London; Oxford Women's Leadership Development Programme, Saïd Business School, University of Oxford.

Global clients Elena had worked with:

A.P. Moller–Maersk, Allianz SE, AngloAmerican, Adidas, BSkyB, Bank Muscat, Chalhoub Group, Coca-Cola Enterprises, De Beers, EY, Experian, GSK, Hasbro, Kahramaa (Qatar’s General Electricity & Water Corporation), King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Center (Kingdom of Saudi Arabia), Nestlé, Novartis, Phoenix Group, PVH, P&G, Pfizer, Sage Group, Sony, Santander, Tullow Oil, Tetra Laval.

What People Are Saying

“Some people are excellent listeners and some people are excellent at taking action. Elena is that rare type of person who combines both. She will listen deeply - noticing things said and unsaid - to fully understand what's needed, and then deliver it to a high standard time and time again. This is her superpower as both a leader and a strategist, and something that I've had the pleasure of witnessing every time I've been lucky enough to work with her.”

- Nicolas Heath, EMEA Partner, ERM

“I had the pleasure of working closely with Elena for several years at a sustainability consultancy in London where we worked on strategy and reporting projects for large corporate clients. I can confidently say that she is one of the most knowledgeable sustainability professionals I’ve worked with. She combines deep technical expertise with strategic thinking and an exceptional level of diligence.  Her work is always thorough, well-considered, and delivered with total reliability. Beyond her professional strengths, she is a joy to work with - collaborative, thoughtful, and fun. ”

- Karen Deignan, Co-Founder, SustainabilityWorks

“Elena is a trusted sustainability advisor to senior leadership. She brings strong judgment on regulatory alignment and translates heavy data into disclosure that’s comprehensive and genuinely useful. Her commitment to rigour helped raise the quality of reporting at Sage and made for an Edie Award–winning sustainability report!”

-Rachel Madan, CEO Megaphone & Quill, Former Executive Director for Sustainability & Impact, Luminous

Contact Us

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