Telling an authentic story through sustainability reporting requires an organisation to prepare a tailored and coherent report.
Sustainability reporting should tell a connected story across every aspect of the organisation. It should include an alignment on several aspects of an organisation like strategy, risk management, business model, performance measurements and key performance indicators.
An organisation’s sustainability report should easily demonstrate to stakeholders the relationships and linkages across the various sections.
An organisation should also be prepared to give stakeholders an overview and detailed information on the connections across it through sustainability reporting.
One key attribute of a well-prepared sustainability report is the ability to present information in a logically, structured, and lucid manner to stakeholders.
It is not enough for organisations to embrace and embed sustainability in their strategy. It is equally vital that the organisation’s reporting tells the complete story, giving stakeholders the necessary insight into the organisation’s value creation in the short and long term.
Some aspects that organisations should focus on to draw connections in their sustainability reporting include the following.
Strategy is a fundamental part of sustainability reporting that connects to other sections of the sustainability report.
Organisations should highlight the relationships between their strategy, stakeholder engagement and the key performance indicators that flow from the strategic pillars or thematic areas.
These performance indicators should include financial and non-financial metrics that link to the remuneration policy of an organisation in the short and long term. The organisation’s key risks should flow from its strategic priorities as well.
The organisation’s business or operating model should highlight the inputs in its value creation, the output and the outcome that flows from these inputs in the context of the organisation’s operation and strategy.
It enables the organisation to express to stakeholders the values that guide decision-making when evaluating trade-offs impacting, for example, profits against environmental or social matters. Stakeholders should also assess the organisation’s long-term competitiveness and viability.
The writer is an Associate Director at PwC Kenya. He writes and speaks widely on corporate reporting topics.
