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What does good ESG reporting look like?

Communicating an organisation's progress on ESG will be a requirement for some. For others, it is an opportunity to share the great work being done, from the simple to the transformative.

Category
Environmental, Social and Governance

The level of reporting required or expected of an organisation will vary according to its circumstances.

Publicly reporting on an organisation’s ESG strategy, activities and progress could form an important part of its stakeholder engagement and sends a strong signal of its commitment to the ESG change plan. It also in turn cements that commitment, helping to further embed ESG in the organisation’s strategic planning. Public reporting can help to establish the organisation’s reputation for openness and transparency, as well as engendering trust with its community. It can also help inform and strengthen internal reporting systems by requiring them to meet the needs of the public commitment and communication.

An externally assured audit report for all or part of the organisation’s ESG activities is even more likely to generate trust, credibility and recognition for the organisation, compared to one which is internally produced and internally validated. This, of course, will come at additional cost which may not be feasible nor appropriate, given the resources and circumstances of the organisation.

With clear links between strategic goals, activity planning, business models, identification of key risks and opportunities, operational indicators and financial performance, the board can identify and manage risk and evaluate and measure success. An ESG statement gives the board an opportunity to reflect on the organisation’s role and impact – both planned and unplanned, celebrate successes and share how its activities contribute to social, sustainability, environmental and development goals. It provides transparency around oversight of the risks and opportunities and can help to strengthen the organisation’s credibility and reputation.

ESG reporting should be in a form in which key stakeholders would like to receive it and which they can most easily digest. For some organisations, this may mean that information it is delivered in different formats for different audiences, with key messages tailored to each, from funders to participants, members and external stakeholders[LV4] . This of course will be more resource-intensive and for many organisations it will be appropriate to compile the information in such a way that only one format is necessary and presents the key facts and messages to a wider audience.

It is likely that an organisation will have a range of stakeholders with differing – and sometimes competing – interests in its ESG activities. To report meaningfully, the organisation will need to know:

  • Who its important stakeholders are
  • The stakeholders it doesn’t yet have but would like to engage
  • The priorities of different stakeholder groups
  • The effectiveness of its engagement

There are some general principles that should be borne in mind:

  • As far as is possible, ensure that various reports cover the same timeframes – this allows reader to assess the progress and impact being made.
  • Where appropriate, cross-reference information to other relevant documents.
  • Ensure that there is a consistency of messaging and terminology across all formats.
  • Aim for ease of use and readability/digestibility.
  • Ensure that information is clear, relevant and jargon-free.
  • Make the reporting speak to the audience – describe the impact that your activities is having on their sport, their own participation or the future of the activity (and organisation itself).

Any publicly available ESG report needs to be accurate, robust and should present an honest view of the organisation’s progress. This will generate trust as well as support and buy-in.

An ESG statement should reflect the organisation’s individual circumstances. It should also consider:

  • What each stakeholder group needs to take from the information.
  • What is needed by a funder may differ from what interests an athlete or participant. This may affect the type of data that is require and the manner in which it is presented.
  • The importance which each stakeholder group attaches to different areas, initiatives, activities and aims which fall under the ESG banner.
  • Why any selected ESG standard or reporting framework was chosen.
  • Realism and honesty over timeframes and progress made.

Coming soon: examples of reporting & ESG statements