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The evolving role of Finance in Sustainability

Finance executives survey - February 2023

Deloitte conducted an online survey of finance executives in the fourth quarter of 2022. The objective was to dive into finance executives’ perception of the role of Finance in relation to sustainability as well as the current ESG reporting preparedness and challenges.

Respondents reflect a cross-industry representation of Belgian public and private companies.

Over the past 12 to 18 months we have been witnessing finance functions taking on sustainability and broader ESG functions. There is an undeniable shift from a happy few that were busy with sustainability to everyone within an organisation realising its importance, from Strategy to Legal, from Risk to Internal Audit, from Human Resources to Quality…

Many chief financial officers are being charged with creating structures for measuring, reporting, and monitoring the impact of ESG risk, as well as the advancement of social and diversity initiatives. Also, as guardians and architects of long-term sustainable value creation, finance chiefs can extend leadership, stewardship and control and have a transformative impact.

Our purpose—through this survey—is to shed light on the current and future role of the finance function in relation to sustainability, as well as the current ESG reporting preparedness and challenges.

In today’s climate of sustainability awareness, companies strive for better ESG disclosure that reflects a firm’s daily operations without being called out for greenwashing, and meets rising stakeholder expectations and increased regulatory requirements. Regulations are being improved at present and the efforts to come up with harmonised guidelines for companies to follow are in the works. Companies are working toward more reliable data, better technology, and additional sustainability-savvy financial professionals to communicate high-quality ESG performance information in a trusted, consistent, and timely way.

Reporting is only the tip of the iceberg. To be able to report according to higher standards, companies first need to outline sustainability commitments and establish appropriate governance and oversight. The second step is to set very clear ESG goals with KPIs that can be measured easily. The third step is to build rock solid data governance and processes within the company. Only with these prerequisites met will companies be able to report and drive reliable performance and business resiliency. Deloitte is committed to helping you throughout your end-to-end "ESG transformation journey".

Discover what your Finance colleagues think of the upcoming challenges regarding ESG and Sustainability and how Deloitte can help you achieve those.

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