2024-01-04 08:00:06
France was, the December 6, 2023, the first country in the European Union to transpose into its national law the new European directive (Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive, or CSRD) on the disclosure by companies of information on environmental, social and governance (ESG) impact in annual reports which should now be called “sustainability reports”.
The implementation of the CSRD, which has come into force gradually since January 1, however, raises fears, particularly among small and medium-sized businesses, prompting the French Senate to launch a mission with a significant title (“ CSRD Directive: too much complexity for SMEs? “). Even if only listed SMEs are directly affected by the CSRD, all companies are in fact, as actors in the value chains. This is why the CSRD encourages the publication of sustainability reports on a voluntary basis.
Undoubtedly, the implementation of the CSRD requires human and financial investment. It involves adapting the company’s organization, working more in project mode, optimizing information collection processes and training employees. The fears of SME managers are legitimate, not on the very interest of the CSRD, a real opportunity for all companies whatever their size, but on the terms and conditions allowing them to benefit from this opportunity.
In-depth strategic thinking
Because it is above all the company that benefits from the CSRD and the publication of a sustainability report. Indeed, the exercise of transparency implied by the disclosure in a standardized manner of social, environmental and governance information encourages the company’s stakeholders to carry out in-depth strategic reflection in the service of their sustainability.
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The CSRD provides a method for evaluating the impact of activities by referring to scientific data. It makes it possible to better prevent and control risks and to be in line with the expectations of stakeholders. It even offers a lever for innovation and identification of new markets. The sustainability report is a management tool, a new key to reading overall performance, the one on which companies are now judged and legitimized by society.
Furthermore, the growing demand for ESG information by financial markets proves that sustainability is a source of trust, and therefore financial value. Investors, banks and insurers are reassured by business management in constant search of a fair balance between risk management and profitability. The CSRD is part of the broader framework of sustainable finance, the tool favored by Europe to finance its Green Deal, the primary ambition of which is to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050.
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