Supply Chain Briefs

Findings from a global study of corporate sustainability reporting reveals that companies in Japan have the highest overall sustainability disclosure rate. The findings raise the fundamental question of why companies report and whether reporting regulations are incentivizing compliance over substance.

For companies embarking on the practice of sustainability reporting it can be challenging to discern between the various reporting frameworks and guidelines. To ease this process, The Conference Board developed a table comparing some of the leading sustainability reporting frameworks.

The Conference Board has developed a sustainable procurement framework to help companies assess their sustainable procurement program’s orientation toward outcomes and impact.

There has been dramatic growth in ESG (Environmental, Sustainability and Governance) investing during the past 20 years – but along with this positive trend comes an equally dramatic rise in ESG reporting requirements, and a proliferation of rating agencies and assessment tools.

Embedding sustainability into the supply chain makes good business sense. Embracing sustainable procurement practices can help companies manage business risks, achieve costs savings through material efficiency gains, enhance their brand reputation, and manage suppliers more effectively. But success requires a focus on real-world impact rather than inputs and activities.

Continued uncertainty over the outcome of Brexit negotiations is not helping. Unemployment in the UK now stands at its lowest level in four decades. Gross domestic product growth at the start of the third quarter of 2018 also shows an economy in decent shape, having grown faster than in the prior two quarters.

Existing company disclosure practices provide the foundation to implement the TCFD’s recommendations Precedent in oil & gas shows reporting at the level of the four principles (governance, strategy, risk, metrics) can be done. Reporting on the 11 specific recommendations will be more challenging, however, none of these are impossible to meet. Climate change is a systemic issue and investors need system-level data. Which means data from all listed companies and eventually the large private ones.

What if companies were able to communicate—in clear financial terms—the total value they create for society? While still very much in a nascent stage, such attempts at total impact valuation are being piloted by more than a dozen major companies across an array of sectors and geographies. A new report finds significant promise in these approaches, but a range of challenges remain to be tackled. Above all, standards for definitions and methodologies are needed to facilitate meaningful comparison.

Is a recession on the horizon in the UK? The short answer to this question is: yes. The probability of a recession in the near term has risen substantially. The UK business cycle is maturing and the lack of certainty around Brexit makes it difficult for consumers and businesses to make plans about the future. These are the ingredients that recessions are made of. The long answer requires an in-depth (and wonkish) analysis of The Conference Board Leading Economic Index for the UK.