The System Physics of Sustainability: Quantifying Submerged Value
Daniel Aronson
Founder & CEO
Daniel Aronson is the founder of Valutus and the architect behind the System Physics of sustainability. His work focuses on a single, data-driven mandate: quantifying the ROI of sustainability and increasing it.
Through unique tools like the InVEST™ Model and Customer Science™, Daniel and the Valutus team have helped companies quantify over $2 billion in sustainability-driven business value, surfacing the “Submerged Value”—financial and operational assets—that traditional accounting misses.
Thought Leadership & Academia
Daniel is the author of The Value of Values (MIT Press, 2024), described by Marshall Goldsmith as “a game-changing book.” He is the originator of the term “Submerged Value” and a frequent guest lecturer at Harvard Business School, MIT Sloan’s Sustainability Lab, Columbia University, and elsewhere. Additionally, he has written or been featured in over 100 articles and publications.
Daniel is a member of the Advisory Board for Sustainable Brands and served as Chair of the Award Committee for the Spencer Hutchens Social Responsibility Medal as well as the Ratings & Rankings Council of the Corporate Responsibility Association. Currently, he serves as an Executive in Residence at the NYU Stern School of Business.
Education
Daniel holds an MBA from the MIT Sloan School of Management and a BA with High Honors from UC Berkeley.
Sean Morgan
Director Of Quantitative Analytics
Sean Morgan is the Director of Quantitative Analytics at Valutus, where he focuses on developing tools and methodologies to calculate the ROI of sustainability efforts. He specializes in applying custom dynamic, quantitative models to solve complex business problems and create actionable valuation models for billion-dollar companies.
Quantitative Finance & Investment Experience
Sean brings extensive financial rigor to sustainability valuation, holding a FINRA Series 65 license. Prior to Valutus, he was the President, Co-founder, and Portfolio Manager of Jantz Morgan, an investment management firm focused quantitative value strategies that during his tenure exceeded their benchmarks by over 500 basis points. He was also Co-founder and Managing Partner at an investment firm specializing in quantitative sustainable real estate development funds.
Engineering & Systems Expertise
Sean’s background is rooted in engineering and process optimization. At Boeing, as a preliminary design Aerodynamics Engineer, he assisted in developing tools that reduced tail sizing process time by 80%. And as a Manager on Arthur Andersen’s US National Strategy Team, he solved clients’ complex business problems using simulation-based quantitative analysis.
Education
Sean holds a MS in Management (MBA) from the MIT Sloan School of Management, with a focus on Financial Management, Strategy, and System Dynamics. He also holds a MS in System Design and Management (SM) from the MIT School of Engineering / Sloan School of Management. He earned his BS in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Kansas.
Abhi Sastry
Senior Consultant
Abhi Sastry is a Senior Consultant at Valutus, specializing in the quantification of sustainability ROI and double materiality assessments. He has partnered with organizations to navigate complex regulatory landscapes, including ESRS and GRI requirements. He leverages skills in data analysis and emerging AI technologies to develop tools that modernizes corporate sustainability and enables organizations to make rapid, data-driven decisions. Such as creating a Tableau dashboard that was utilized by multiple Fortune 500 companies to facilitate decision-making around double materiality.
Operational Efficiency & Supply Chain Optimization
Abhi brings extensive experience in operational management and supply chain logistics. At Better Place Forests, a Series-C startup valued at $300 million, he served as Supply Chain Manager, where he developed an automated merchandising system using Looker and Excel. He spearheaded core expansion projects critical to the company’s growth, collaborating with executive leadership and across product, strategy, and engineering teams.
Commercial Strategy & P&L Management
Prior to his startup experience, Abhi worked as a Category Specialist at Walmart eCommerce, where he owned the P&L for an $8 million business segment. During his tenure, he grew revenue by 30% year-over-year. He successfully launched an exclusive product line that was featured on the site’s homepage, selling over 5,000 units in four months. His role involved managing relationships with national brands and onboarding new vendors.
Education & Certifications
Abhi holds a BBA University of Michigan’s Stephen M. Ross School of Business, graduating with Distinction. While there he was involved with the Erb Institute for Business and Environment, conducting research for them. He holds a certification in Tableau Desktop.