21 May Admin reporting impacting sustainability leaders focus on core value activities
A new survey suggests that 70% of sustainability professionals believe that increased reporting challenges have limited their teams to a level that will impact delivering on impactful areas of their organisation.
This was the key finding from the management firm Mitie based on the insights from 500 sustainability decision-makers across the UK. The majority of sustainability professionals surveyed support the concept that there is too much admin associated with producing sustainability reports and with collating disclosure documents to enable businesses to ensure compliance standards meet vital regulations.
Internal reporting was discussed as a significant limitation. Over 60% of respondents stated they are responsible for delivering sustainability data to the board at least every quarter. Over 35% of respondents said they are actively looking to outsource reporting and disclosures to claw back some time. A total of 80% have invested in digital solutions in an attempt to enhance and simplify carbon reporting.
Several sustainability leaders claim it is time wasted for them to take the lead on reporting. The majority of sustainability professionals stated that the sheer amount of time and money allocated towards reporting directly influences their capability to deliver impactful projects to reduce carbon and achieve environmental targets.
When asked where they would allocate the time and resources secured by the outsourcing reporting admin, the response was relatively mixed. Priorities differed from creating credible net zero transition plans to investing in nature-based projects to collaborating with charities for community development programs. Catherine Wheatley, the head of data science and energy services of Mitie, believes that environmental data plays a critical role in shaping and reforming business strategy but recognised that additional reporting had unintentionally become a burden.
Wheatley explains that the findings indicate that the time and resources allocated to reporting have delayed decarbonisation plans as added time is spent on admin and problem-solving, rather than taking action and adding value to an organisation. A previous report from Mitie showed that less than 20% of sustainability professionals believe their current approaches to reporting are effective. In this latest survey, 40% stated that an increase in multiple disclosure schemes, both mandatory and voluntary, has created confusion surrounding what information is disclosed and in what formats.
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