Almost three-quarters of UK companies believe there are too many ESG reporting standards and measures, with 85 per cent calling for greater clarity, according to new research from Intertek.
Sustainability has become a mainstream concern for companies, with heightened expectations from investors, regulators, government, employees and the public. 74 per cent of c-suite level respondents agree that customers and other stakeholders are demanding that companies do more in relation to sustainability.
Alongside this, 83 per cent of respondents agree that government and politicians are placing greater importance on improving sustainability performance, whilst 79 per cent feel there is greater awareness on this issue from employees, and 83 per cent from the general public.
The sheer complexity of corporations’ global value chains and the risks inherent at each level are also highlighted in the survey findings, in which over 500 senior decision makers at UK based companies were surveyed. 65 per cent of respondents feel they find it difficult to understand their supply chain beyond those they have a direct relationship with and 57 per cent said that they do not know how to assess the relationships within their companies’ supply chain.
76 per cent of respondents believe that companies take on risk by not assessing their full supply chain, whilst over 90 per cent acknowledged that at least some elements of their company supply chains would receive a poor sustainability report if they were to be fully audited.
Stakeholders are now less willing to accept sustainability claims at face value and over three-quarters of respondents would welcome a simplified audit programme to benchmark and assess their company’s sustainability footprints.
