Introduction

Just a few years ago, ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) was more an aspirational goal than it was a source of risk or strategic concern. Many organizations would issue sustainability reports to let the market know they took concerns about climate change and the environment seriously. Others would submit environmental data to voluntary frameworks to improve their brand and benchmark their CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) efforts against their competitors.

Today, the world is very different. ESG has quickly moved from marketing campaigns to a serious legislative and regulatory obligation with significant consequences for corporate reporting and data management. Two recent developments demonstrate the serious nature of these obligations.

The Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) came into force in January 2023. While the EU (European Union) is the primary focus of the directive, any global organization that operates in the EU or has a supply chain that includes the EU … Read more...