What Makes a Good Sustainability Report | Ariane Hofstetter of Global ESG Monitor

What makes a corporate sustainability report worth reading? Ariane Hofstetter, co-founder of the Global ESG Monitor, joins Abbie Fink to explain why an ESG report or sustainability report is an official document rather than a marketing brochure, and how it helps companies track their progress and manage non-financial risks such as damage to their reputation. 🌐 Season 4, Episode 7 • Originally published as an audio podcast on April 4, 2024. 💻 Show notes and transcript: https://prgnpodcast.com/episode/quali... Ariane breaks transparency down into measurable qualities, including comparability, accuracy, timeliness, reliability, relevance and accessibility. She explains why smaller suppliers need sustainability data to answer their larger customers, and why the hardest step is often having the courage to leave out topics that are not material. Many people hold a romantic view of sustainability until it turns into tedious data collection, she says. So assign clear responsibilities and start reporting, instead of waiting for a perfect first report. She also describes how the Global ESG Monitor, founded in 2019, finds gaps through quality ratings, ESRS readiness checks and peer-group comparisons. Workforce, supply chains and resilience are good places to begin. KEY TAKEAWAYS • A sustainability report is an official document for stakeholders, not a marketing brochure. • Transparency becomes measurable when you break it down into comparability, accuracy, timeliness, reliability, relevance and accessibility. • Smaller companies in larger value chains need to be ready to provide sustainability data to their customers. • A materiality assessment gives a company the confidence to leave out topics that do not matter to its stakeholders. • Start reporting now instead of waiting until you can produce a perfect first report. --------------------------------------- ABOUT THE GUEST Ariane Hofstetter is co-founder of the Global ESG Monitor and developed the methodology behind its GEM Assay™, which evaluates the quality of corporate sustainability reporting through more than 700 questions and 4,000 variables. She is a board member of cometis AG and managing director of the market research institute KOHORTEN, and advises capital-market-oriented SMEs on materiality analyses, sustainability strategies, ratings, stakeholder mapping and reporting. • Learn more: https://globalesgmonitor.com/ • Connect with Ariane:   / ariane-hofstetter   --------------------------------------- ABOUT THE HOSTS Abbie Fink is president of HMA Public Relations, the oldest continuously operating PR firm in Arizona and a founding member of PRGN. • Learn more: https://prgn.com/agency/hma-public-re... • Connect with Abbie:   / abbiesfink   Dr. Adrian McIntyre is an anthropologist and communications advisor specializing in the marketing and selling of expertise. He is a founding partner at Speed of Story, where he helps entrepreneurial experts and boutique firms clarify their positioning, package their intellectual property, market their premium services, and get paid for their thinking, not their time. • Learn more: https://adrianmcintyre.com/ • Connect with Adrian:   / adrianmcintyre   --------------------------------------- CHAPTERS 00:00 Podcast Intro 00:59 Meet Ariane Hofstetter of Global ESG Monitor 01:47 What Is a Sustainability Report? 03:53 What Makes a Quality Report: Transparency and Accessibility 06:08 Why Smaller Companies Need Sustainability Data Too 06:44 How a Materiality Assessment Shapes Sustainability Reporting 08:20 How the Global ESG Monitor Began 10:50 The Hardest Parts of Gathering ESG Data 14:19 Finding the Gaps Against Peers and Regulation 17:39 Where to Start: Workforce, Supply Chains and Resilience 21:39 Podcast Outro --------------------------------------- 🌐 PRGN Presents features conversations with members of the Public Relations Global Network. No matter where you do business, there is a PRGN member agency in your region with the deep industry expertise, international experience, and local market knowledge you need to connect with your target audience and achieve your goals. Find a PR firm near you: https://prgn.com/pr-agencies/