What makes a great sustainability report?

Ensure that your sustainability reporting is aligned with recognised standards such as the ESRS or the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) for greater reliability and comparability. Incorporate frameworks such as the Task Force on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures (TCFD), the Science Based Targets Initiative (SBTi) or the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) to increase credibility and relevance. Regularly review and update your practices to stay in line with evolving guidelines and stakeholder expectations.

Comprehensive reporting builds trust and allows for meaningful benchmarking, making the completeness of your data a critical aspect of sustainability reporting. Avoid omitting information as gaps can undermine trust and the reliability of the report. Use benchmarking against peers to identify areas for improvement and ensure that your disclosures remain competitive, comprehensive, and relevant.

Ensure that your sustainability report addresses the topics that really matter to your business and stakeholders by prioritising material issues identified through a Double Materiality Assessment (ideally based on a robust framework, such as provided by ESRS). Align your disclosures with industry-specific guidelines , such as the GRI or Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) sector standards, to maintain relevance and credibility. These frameworks can provide valuable guidance while you wait for ESRS sector standards to be issued (expected mid-2026). Avoid overemphasising less critical areas.

Comparative data adds credibility and highlights progress over time, making it an essential part of sustainability reporting. Including figures from previous years allows stakeholders to observe trends and assess the company’s performance over time. The use of consistent metrics is equally important to ensure that data is comparable from year to year. This consistency provides a clear and reliable basis for assessing progress and identifying areas for improvement.

Stakeholder engagement enriches your sustainability reporting by including diverse perspectives and ensuring relevance. Clearly stating how you have engaged with different groups demonstrates transparency and accountability. Integrating stakeholder feedback into your strategy and reporting further enhances its value. Showing how their input has been incorporated in your approach underlines your commitment to collaboration and responsiveness.

Use clear, straightforward language to make your report accessible to a wide audience, including investors, customers, employees and the community. Avoid unnecessary jargon, but tailor the language to the needs of your stakeholders and the objectives of the report to ensure it remains meaningful and engaging. Readability tools can help to reduce complexity where necessary.

Transparency in sustainability reporting requires acknowledging both successes and challenges, so it is important to maintain a balanced tone and language. Mentioning both achievements and areas for improvement builds credibility and trust. Avoid excessive self-promotion, and when addressing challenges, provide context on steps being taken to improve.

A well-designed and accessible report increases engagement and usability. Offer multiple formats such as interactive web versions and PDFs, include linked tables of content and provide clear headings for easy navigation. Use graphics to simplify complex data and offer multilingual options – including at least one local language and English – to reach a wider audience.

Third -party assurance builds trust in your sustainability reporting. Commissioning an independent audit/review from a reputable firm, adds credibility and ensures the accuracy of your report. This can also be relevant to companies not subject to CSRD, e.g., smaller companies who are suppliers to CSRD-reporters and want to use their voluntary reporting to increase their ESG-score. Being transparent about the scope and opinion of the external assurance will further strengthen stakeholder confidence.

Although sustainability reports are increasingly standardised through key performance indicators (KPIs), they should still reflect your company’s unique identity and strategic objectives. Aligning your reporting with broader goals ensures relevance and creates a distinctive narrative that resonates with stakeholders.