Practical: your sustainability report in six steps
Starting a sustainability report can be a challenging task. Who should be involved? Where do you begin? And how do you achieve a strong result? Follow these six steps to navigate the complexity of sustainability reporting.
Define your starting point
Clarify obligations, stakeholder expectations and ambitions. Map out what sustainability data you already collect and where you want to go.
Do
- Systematically map out obligations, expectations and ambitions. The legal department can provide support on laws and regulations. Stakeholders can explain their wishes through interviews or surveys. And the management team or board can set the direction for the level of ambition.
- Explicitly record decisions in one place and use that as a reference during the process.
- Analyse the sustainability communication of competitors and clients to gain insight into strategic choices and report content.
Don’t
- Do not start without a clear picture of obligations, stakeholders and ambition. This will later lead to confusion.
Create a clear storyline and structure
Define the report’s main thread and structure upfront to ensure a clear and cohesive narrative.
Do
- Focus on the content and message, not just the data points and reporting requirements.
- Have the report’s structure (the storyline and main framework) approved in advance by the decision-makers (management team or board). This prevents misunderstandings and ensures internal alignment.
Don’t
- Do not lose sight of the guiding principles for a good sustainability report. These are comparability, accuracy, timeliness, clarity and reliability.
Synopsis and reporting approach
Start by drawing up a logical structure and storyline for your report. For example, decide whether you will produce an integrated report or report on sustainability separately. Then elaborate on this choice in a synopsis with chapter divisions: this will clarify how the report is structured and where each piece of information will be placed.
Then develop a reporting approach for each sustainability theme. Ask yourself the following questions:
- What does this theme mean for our organisation?
- What are our ambitions in relation to this topic?
- What actions and progress towards objectives will we report on this year?
Answering these questions in advance will provide direction and guidance for writing the report.
Option 1: An integrated report
Option 2: Report sustainability separately
Determine process and role allocation
While defining the storyline and themes, also set up responsibilities and the process properly. The writing task often lies with a colleague who is well-versed in the relevant theme, while another expert, an MT member or a board member, handles the review. If the report must comply with a reporting standard (such as ESRS), it is essential that the responsible writer is well acquainted with the standards. Also involve colleagues from legal affairs and risk management in the review: they can contribute to the completeness, consistency and reliability of the report.
Make sure deadlines and responsibilities are clear for all involved. This helps in planning time for writing and reviewing. Support and ownership ensure a smooth writing process.
Do
- Form a multidisciplinary team to combine all necessary knowledge and skills.
- Record who has writing and review authority in a reporting protocol with a timeline.
- Appoint a process coordinator to monitor progress and make timely adjustments.
- Working on an integrated annual report? Ensure that starting point, storyline and role allocation (steps 1, 2 and 3) are aligned at least six months before publication.
Don’t
- Do not ignore the need for cross-functional coordination. ESG affects many teams and departments: involve them in the process and keep them continuously informed.
Reporting protocol
Record the process in a reporting protocol. Start by describing the governance: what does the decision-making and responsibility surrounding reporting look like? Map out who has which role and decision-making authority. Then draw up a clear plan with timelines and milestones. Next, determine which key performance indicators (KPIs) you want to use and record how you will collect and secure the necessary data. By working out these components, you will create a clear and repeatable process that you can further improve each year.
Start writing
Start with a working version or ‘dummy’ of the report, in which the chapter layout and main thread are already visible. You have already defined these earlier. The dummy version provides a clear framework in which involved colleagues can develop their contributions. Then add data and indicators and gradually complete the report.
Do
- Start with a ‘dummy report’ based on the synopsis.
- Work with a writing guide that specifies the structure, tone and presentation of data for each theme. This ensures consistency.
- Use placeholders or markers where information is still missing, so the writing process can continue.
Don’t
- Avoid each chapter having a different structure. Consistency in layout and tone is crucial for readability.
Your 'dummy report'
Prepare a working version or “dummy” of your report. This dummy contains all the parts that will make up the final report. Add instructions and guidelines for writers about the desired structure, tone and order. This will ensure a consistent and readable end result.
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Collect and process information consistently and ensure proper substantiation
A sustainability report is not only about transparency, but also about reliability and comparability. A multidisciplinary team provides the input of data. This involves different departments in the process, possibly from various locations and countries. External data is also included, collected from the value chain. It is therefore essential that you collect, process and substantiate all information in a consistent way, with clear sources and documented assumptions and estimates.
Collect relevant documents for each chapter and store them in a dossier. This makes it easy to retrieve data later, whether for internal checks, the next reporting year or external assurance. By actively linking your report to supporting documentation, you demonstrate that the presented information is substantiated. This also helps to avoid the appearance of unfounded or misleading claims.
Is an auditor reviewing parts of the report or specific KPIs? Then this process becomes even more important. The auditor will request evidence for data, calculations, underlying procedures, internal controls and explanations for assumptions and estimates. A well-organised dossier in which this supporting documentation is recorded in advance saves time and discussion.
Do
- Determine what your dossier structure should look like and apply this to all chapters, including a solid process with internal checks.
- Ensure comparable information in the documentation and also substantiate the assumptions used.
- Discuss the reporting approach with the auditor before writing, so you can supplement missing documentation in advance.
Don’t
- Do not start building the dossier after the report is finished. Collect documentation from the start.
- Do not let departments manage documents separately. Work in a central, standardised database to prevent errors and contradictions.
Maintain control over supporting documentation and completeness
Do you have a large file with supporting documentation that you want to keep organised and complete? Create an overview in which you record which documents provide the supporting evidence for which part of the report. This makes it easy for the (internal) auditor to find the correct supporting documentation. Do you want to comply with a reporting standard, either voluntarily (in part) or mandatorily? Keep track of which parts of the standard are included in which sections of the report. This way, you can be sure that the required information is present, while the standard does not dominate the report.
Ensure publication and focus on implementing improvements
Once all texts have been written and reviewed, the report is finalised. Have the entire document proofread by one or more people with an eye for final editing. They will check not only language, but also consistency, logical structure and whether you convey the intended message effectively. The person with final responsibility (usually the board) will generally want to provide final input and ultimately give approval for publication. Make sure this process is transparent so that there are no surprises.
Your report is now more than a retrospective; it is a springboard for further development. The strategic considerations and improvement points that emerged during writing help you to keep learning and building towards long-term value creation.
Do
- Have the report proofread by a final editor for language, consistency and logical structure.
- Enrich the report with visual elements that reinforce the content.
- Think of tables, charts or diagrams that make complex information clear.
- Inform the board in good time about changes in the approach.
- Create an improvement plan and ensure it contains concrete actions.
Don’t
- Do not see publication as the end point, but as the starting point of communication. Use your report as an invitation to actively involve stakeholders in your approach, in a dialogue.