Companies who report on their impacts on sustainability and the strategies they implement in order to manage those impacts, have seen first hand the many benefits that sustainability reporting can bring.

But for company executives who are now just beginning to examine the possibility of reporting, what kind of value can your company expect to get from publishing a sustainability report? Aiming to help inform this decision, we will examine some of the benefits of sustainability (or CSR) reporting for reporting companies.

A meaningful boost for your company’s image

By publishing a sustainability report, your company is showing to the public how well it is responding to sustainability issues our society is facing today, including issues related to the environment, economy or society. Therefore, it is a great opportunity to advertise your company’s positive actions, policies, programs, and initiatives toward sustainable development and show how responsibly sustainability is integrated into the business model. Reporting can have obvious benefits for your company’s reputation and can be a great advertising, PR and brand awareness tool. Showing that your company cares for the environment, its people, the products and services it offers, and the broader society can greatly benefit the image of your company.

An effective management tool

In order to get better and improve upon something, you must first begin by measuring it so that you know your current performance before setting a target for improvement. As management expert Peter Drucker said, “You can't manage what you don't measure”. For example, if you want to manage your energy consumption, you first need to know how much energy you consume. And here is the value of a sustainability report: through sustainability reporting based on GRI Standards, your company will start measuring things that might not have been previously measured in a standardized, comparable way, and therefore managing. By having all sustainability metrics in one place, you now have the bigger picture of your company’s performance in your hands and are equipped to make better-informed decisions. Managing your corporate sustainability performance is now an easier task. Experienced sustainability consulting firms can help companies streamline their measurement, put their measurements in context, and help them set goals for improving their performance.

An insightful benchmarking tool

Sustainability reporting is a snapshot of your company’s performance and management approach regarding sustainability during a certain year. By having all your sustainability metrics gathered in one place you have a unique opportunity to assess your company’s sustainability performance against your peers and understand what your position within your sector is. This can unpack a whole set of opportunities, since you may discover areas where your company is leading the way and can use that achievement as an effective marketing tool. On the other hand, you can also identify areas where your performance is lagging and there is room for improvement. If you, for example, find out that your company’s energy intensity (energy consumption per ton of product, or hour of service) is much higher than what your peers are reporting, this would probably mean that you are less efficient and therefore paying a higher cost.

Important input for your sustainability strategy

Sustainability reporting, after all, is about reporting on your most important (material) impacts, positive or negative, on sustainability. Those material topics are defined through a process called materiality analysis, which takes into consideration both the significance of the impact/topic and the views of the stakeholders on this specific impact/topic. Conducting materiality analysis right, in combination with the KPIs of your company’s performance on those issues, can (and should) be great input for your sustainability strategy. And if you have not yet developed a strategy, you can use the results of your materiality analysis as a starting point.

A valuable investor relations tool

Reporting on sustainability can be a great asset for your company when it comes to investor relations and the valuation of your company. Sustainability reporting shows investors that you are aware of and proactively managing the impacts of sector-specific and industry-specific issues that are material to your stakeholders, such as:

• Climate Change

• Energy Management

• Water Management

• Materials Management

• Product Life-Cycle

• Human Trafficking

• Diversity and Inclusion

A great internal awareness tool

Different teams within companies often operate in silos where employees miss the holistic view of the company or simply don’t know the full extent of the many activities, policies, programs, and initiatives that the company has implemented to manage sustainability impacts. In other words, having all this information in one place - your company’s sustainability report - is a great opportunity for your internal stakeholders to learn more about your company. Learning what great accomplishments your company has achieved during the last year can lead to higher engagement levels.

A significant competitive advantage

As analyzed above, sustainability reporting can result in many benefits for your company, including:

• Positively influencing your company’s valuation

• Improving brand awareness and the overall image of your company

• Helping management make informed decisions

• Providing useful input to formulate or improve upon your sustainability strategy

• Understanding how your company performs against peers

• Letting employees and future talent know more about your company’s sustainability and CSR accomplishments

The combined benefits of sustainability reporting can give your company a powerful competitive advantage. Engaging the assistance of an experienced sustainability reporting consulting firm can help you maximize the benefits of reporting while helping your company improve its overall sustainability performance.

KERAMIDA provides Sustainability Reporting Training services to organizations throughout the U.S. as a CDP Accredited Provider and GRI Certified Training Partner. For more information about our Sustainability and CSR Consulting Services, including sustainability strategy, planning, and reporting, please call us today at (800) 508-8034 or contact us.

Blog Author

Giorgos Iliopoulos, M.S.
Senior Project Manager,
Sustainability Services
GRI Approved Trainer
KERAMIDA Inc.

Contact Giorgos at giliopoulos@keramida.com.