Ensure CSR compliance and ESG reporting: CSRD consulting & software for your ESG data management
On January 5, 2023, the new EU directive on sustainability reporting, the “Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive” ((EU) 2022/2464), came into force. The CSRD replaces the previous “Non Financial Reporting Directive (NFRD)” and is a key instrument of the “EU Green Deal”. This pursues the goal of developing Europe into a climate-neutral continent by 2050 and aims to promote sustainable business practices. The new requirements for companies subject to reporting obligations are intended to increase the transparency, comparability and quality of sustainability reporting. Just like financial reports, sustainability reports will have to undergo an external audit in future, which means that both the formal and content requirements for CSRD reports will increase enormously.
The CSRD and numerous other legislative requirements require ESG data – key figures and information from the areas of environment, social affairs, and corporate governance. In addition, companies must define ESG principles, strategies, and targets. Careful data collection, analysis, and validation are crucial for translating these into concrete measures and for tracking progress and improvements.
ESG data management focuses primarily on data that can help assess and transparently communicate a company’s environmental performance and its positioning in the context of sustainability. This makes sustainability not only reportable, but also measurable and verifiable.
tec4U-Solutions helps you to meet the challenges posed by CSRD compliance and the ESG management required for this in a legally compliant, fast, and cost-effective manner.
What CSRD challenges do you face?
A key change is the specific requirement for report content and structure in accordance with the uniform European reporting standards, the European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS). With their extensive reporting requirements, these standards generate a flood of information that reporting companies must collect over time and integrate into their sustainability reports.
In particular, information on the carbon footprint and material compliance of the respective products requires a far-reaching view of the value chain and the request for supplier data. ESG data management plays a crucial role in ensuring that data is collected properly and assessed objectively.
Another challenge is the “materiality analysis,” which is mandatory under the CSRD. This serves to identify all relevant and therefore reportable sustainability issues. Material sustainability issues are identified according to the principle of double materiality, whereby both financial materiality and the materiality of the impacts are considered:
Since the specific implementation of the materiality assessment (e.g., the definition of thresholds and the type of documentation) is insufficiently specified by legislators, many companies face major challenges.
How do you achieve CSRD Compliance?
CSRD consulting
CSRD Process Workshop
tec4U-Solutions supports you in implementing the mandatory sustainability reporting for your company in a targeted and cost-effective manner. Depending on your requirements, we can base our approach on either the ESRS Set 1 or the VSME standard.
1. Double Materiality Assessment (DMA)
In workshops, we work with your specialist departments to identify the IROs (= impacts, risks, opportunities) that are relevant to you and derive the material topics for your CSRD-compliant sustainability report. When referring to the VSME standard, we recommend a simplified materiality analysis at topic level.
2. GAP analysis to identify missing data points
This is followed by the assignment of all data points (“disclosure requirements”) to the material topics. In the form of a target/actual comparison, the existing information and data points are compared with the information required for the sustainability report.
In addition, tec4U-Solutions provides support in the formulation and visual design of the CSRD report in collaboration with the marketing/communications department.
The CSRD workshop provides you with the following results:
ESG data management software
DataCross: Software for your ESG data management
CSRD reporting companies can use the DataCross communication software to survey their supply chain. The focus is particularly on product-related data points such as:
- CO2 emissions
- Material compliance (information on substances of concern)
- Use of recycled material
Company-related information on working conditions, ethical practices, and resource consumption can be configured using the free query module. The software also offers a module for creating risk analysis in accordance with the CSDDD (Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive) and for creating due diligence declarations in accordance with the EUDR (EU Deforestation Regulation).
In accordance with the Ecodesign Regulation, it will be necessary in the coming years to create digital product passports for certain products that transparently communicate relevant information about the product to consumers or customers. DataCross also offers a high-performance solution for providing the data in the required data structure in accordance with DPP.
Our ESG software solution offers you the following advantages:
In particular, the use of tools for ESG data management and the reduction of manual processes can increase data quality, boost efficiency, and ensure compliance with all regulatory and market requirements. Due to the large amount of data that needs to be requested within the supply chain, not only the collection but also the evaluation and management of this information is becoming increasingly complex.
A suitable tool such as DataCross can help here and greatly reduce the amount of work involved – while ensuring the necessary legal certainty.
By using our Data Cross software, you can collect and evaluate the necessary information and data points for your individual sustainability report. Flexible, quick to implement, and economically viable!
Any questions?
We are looking forward to your contact.
Gülistan Dar
We look forward to supporting you.