Simplify and Superconnect: the golden rules for CSRD reporting

Katy Fuller

The Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) has been a significant topic in client meetings over the past year. Nearly everyone asked, "How do we implement it?"

By “it,” we refer to the obligation to report on nearly 1,000 data points in a prescriptive fashion that frequently does not align with the broader sustainability narrative. Furthermore, it is essential to satisfy auditors while ensuring stakeholders comprehend your sustainability strategy.

This is no small challenge.

At Gather, our guiding principles are to simplify and superconnect. This approach enables our clients to articulate their sustainability story consistently across all platforms.

We have compiled the four most frequently encountered questions, along with our responses, to assist clients in effectively addressing CSRD while still creating engaging communications.

1. How do we bring our content to life?

It’s essential to remember that the Sustainability Statements section is designed for a specific audience: your auditors and analysts. This section is not the appropriate place to share your entire sustainability narrative. You can do that in your Annual Report and through other communication channels.

To effectively bring your content to life, identify your sustainability story and emphasise how it differentiates you from your competitors.

You can demonstrate how you create value by sharing a simple yet impactful story throughout your Annual Report. Weaving sustainability into your business narrative and broader communications allows you to utilise CSRD data effectively without overly relying on it to express your commitment and progress.

Connecting this narrative throughout all your communication channels will ensure it resonates with all your stakeholders. Consistency is essential for bringing your content to life.

 

2. How do we simplify the story when the data is so heavy?

Staying true to your story is essential for practical simplification. Your integrated sustainability narrative should steer your communications, with CSRD data supporting it – not the other way around.

When simplifying the Annual Report, where CSRD data is crucial, consider restricting data-heavy content to the Sustainability Statements. This approach allows you to integrate your sustainability narrative throughout the other sections of the report.

Remember, although CSRD compliance is part of your Annual Report, your narrative goes beyond this. It is vital to integrate your story across all your communication channels.

 

3. How can we use the CSRD process to define the sustainability story?

Navigating the CSRD compliance process will provide you with invaluable data about your business, including double materiality outcomes and value chain mapping.

By contextualising and integrating this data into your Annual Report and other communications, you can strengthen your approach to sustainability with solid data.

New information, including insights from your value chain, illustrates how your business generates value beyond mere profits. By effectively distilling and disseminating this information throughout your communications, you will engage your stakeholders and enhance the telling of your sustainability narrative.

 

4. What does good look like?

Your writer is an insider who has had the opportunity to observe and influence some of the leading CSRD reports before publication.

Authenticity and transparency

Recognising that “good” will appear differently for each company is essential. Your sustainability narrative and how you present it should be distinctive to your business.

CSRD compliance necessitates comparable ESG data year over year. By establishing clear targets and consistently monitoring progress, you can openly address challenges and identify areas for improvement. Transparency fosters trust with your stakeholders and demonstrates your commitment to ongoing enhancement.

Integrating sustainability

Investors are increasingly demanding that sustainability information be presented alongside financial data. There is a growing recognition that success in both non-financial and financial aspects is crucial for business resilience.

Through the CSRD, you can address this in your Annual Report by including essential compliance data points and referencing them throughout the document. For example, the principle of double materiality provides valuable insights into stakeholder sentiment; this should be included in the stakeholder engagement section rather than solely in the Sustainability Statements.

Simplify and superconnect

The best way to excel in CSRD reporting and broader communications is to convey your sustainability story effectively and concisely in a manner that resonates with your stakeholders. Distilling your narrative into something straightforward will make your approach distinctive and relevant to your business for all stakeholder groups. Link your story across all your communication channels to ensure it is heard.

Get in touch

If you’d like to discuss this please get in touch with Katy Fuller, Senior Sustainability Consultant, katy@gather.london to learn more about how we assist clients with CSRD compliance and reporting journeys.

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Katy Fuller

Simplify and Superconnect: the golden rules for CSRD reporting

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