What if the future of your business depended not on profits alone, but on the transparency of your impact on the planet and society? This was the underlying challenge posed at the recent iX Summit Melbourne panel discussion moderated by Andrew Petersen, CEO of the Business Council for Sustainable Development in Australia. Industry leaders gathered to share invaluable insights into the challenges and opportunities of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) disclosures, revealing their transformative potential for businesses worldwide.
“Investors and broader stakeholders have been requesting businesses to provide more transparent disclosures than what can be found in their annual reports,” explained Sophie Jackman, Head of ESG Disclosure and Reporting at ANZ. She traced the origins of ESG frameworks to the late 1990s, underscoring their role in guiding capital allocation decisions. “The birth of ESG sustainability, triple bottom line, and corporate sustainability disclosures stems from these demands,” she added.
The establishment of the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) marked a significant milestone, driving consistency in reporting. “Seeing how quickly [these standards] have been picked up in the Australian market is amazing,” Jackman noted. Yet, the journey has just begun. “Complexity is increasing,” she said, pointing to the diverse challenges of operating across jurisdictions.
As ESG reporting evolves, ensuring the credibility of disclosures has become a priority. JP Stevenson, Head of Market Development for EiQ at LRQA, highlighted the important role of assurance in building trust. “Bodies reporting on this are in a powerful position to hold suppliers to a higher standard,” he stated. Reflecting on decades of industrial standards, Stevenson observed that while frameworks like ISO 9001 and ISO 14000 elevated operational quality, sustainability challenges require more robust mechanisms.
“ESG supply chain due diligence requirements place tremendous pressure on supply chains, often already undercapitalized,” he warned. Stevenson called for greater transparency and collaboration, emphasizing, “There’s no magic pill for issues like human rights due diligence—it’s a really hard problem.”…
Read the full story in the November 2024 issue of Impact Leadership magazine.
