EU non-financial reporting: use the opportunity to get the best of both worlds, sustainability and increased profits.
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According to the European Commission’s Proposal for the EU that just passed through the European Parliament, European companies with more than 500 employees whose financial reports show either a balance sheet excess total of EUR 20 million or a net turnover of EUR 40 million will have to disclose non-financial information pertaining to their corporate social responsibility (CSR) measures and policies.
These will range from energy efficiency and renewable energy to the control over their supply chain, including labour rights, human rights and community engagement.
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[wc_testimonial by=”The EU Single Market, Non-Financial Reporting” url=”http://ec.europa.eu/internal_market/accounting/non-financial_reporting/index_en.htm” position=”left”]”Companies concerned will need to disclose information on policies, risks and outcomes
as regards environmental matters, social and
employee-related aspects, respect for human
rights, anti-corruption and bribery issues, and
diversity in their board of directors.”[/wc_testimonial]
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Companies may see such sustainability reporting as a burden, but the truth is that CSR measures can be profitable as well. In addition of gaining transparency in business, companies investing more in the CSR reduce risks, save costs and often make more money if their end-consumers demonstrate the willingness to pay a sustainability premium.
The new European Union non-financial reporting directive is an opportunity for every company to see how to turn the compliance pressure into their own favour. Systematic and regular sustainability non-financial reporting expected from the companies requires building an inventory of CSR issues and indicators. These should be strategically selected and subjected to a cost-benefit analysis (CBA), which should help your company determine whether there is a viable business case to pursue a certain CSR measure.
In order to get the best of both worlds, namely sustainability and increased profits, Aphaia’s new CaseForGreen product integrates setting your CSR agenda with verifying and justifying its elements by means of CBA, and finally providing a comprehensive CSR report on your efforts according to the new EU non-financial reporting directive.
