The main aim of the CSRD is to drive accountability and transparency, while promoting sustainable practices and investments. Companies will need to report on a variety of ESG metrics, giving customers and investors an all-access view of their sustainability agenda. Beyond regulatory requirements, the CSRD is your chance to deepen your understanding of the sustainability risks and opportunities facing your organisation, and accelerate your response. In taking your reporting beyond compliance, and integrating it into your overall business strategy, you’ll unlock profit and purpose, protect your reputation and drive growth. Getting it right and getting ahead are vital.
What is CSRD?
“This isn't just about compliance. The CSRD presents a real opportunity to add value and drive growth. By engaging early and embedding the CSRD into your strategy, you'll cement your commitment to our environment and communities, while realising transformational benefits.”
Lisa O'Donnell, UK CSRD Leader
Who is impacted?
The CSRD will impact more companies than any other piece of sustainability regulation to date, raising the bar on disclosures across the ‘E’, ‘S’ and ‘G’. Approximately 50,000 companies worldwide will be required to disclose, track and measure their sustainability performance. All companies who fulfill two of the three requirements outlined below will be required to comply with the CSRD:
- Net turnover of more than €40 million
- Balance sheet assets greater than €20 million
- More than 250 employees
Small and medium enterprises will also come into scope further down the line, indicating the need for strategy development and implementation now. Given the detailed disclosure requirements and growing demand for transparency, it is likely firms not directly in scope will also see increased investor pressure to publish information in line with the CSRD, as stakeholders look to understand the link between sustainability and wider business risks and opportunities.
Minimise risk with data and double materiality
Data is the springboard to reporting success. The CSRD data requirement is intensive. Companies will be facing a complex web of disclosure demands with over 1,000 data points to report on, across 10 key ESG topics, including pollution, resource use and biodiversity. Disclosures must cover qualitative and quantitative measures across short, medium and long-term considerations, spanning the entire value chain.
Organisations must report on how their business is impacted by sustainability risks and opportunities, as well as how their own activities impact society and the environment. This ‘double materiality’ approach to reporting forms a deep-dive analysis tool that can help guide and support strategic decision making. Through robust reporting, management teams can gain a deeper understanding of how business performance and the environment are interconnected, identifying priorities and areas of focus. Investors can understand the impact of operations, and risks can be minimised and even mitigated, through effective use of the CSRD framework.
Gearing up for CSRD with PwC
Globally, we work directly with regulators to craft and shape the reporting landscape, meaning our team of experts are at the forefront of ESG legislation. Our specialists work across the sustainability disclosure requirements. From scoping and readiness assessments, to gap analysis, to deliver a streamlined and cohesive response to the CSRD and wider sustainability disclosure ecosystem, including the EU Taxonomy. Our tech-powered approach is focused on integration, enabling our clients to unlock value while meeting the regulatory requirements of both today and tomorrow.
Our team of sustainability specialists build and integrate ESG processes, minimising risk, breaking down silos and unlocking economic and environmental goals. We’re seamlessly joining the dots together, empowering our clients to fuel growth through sustainability reporting.
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