As stakeholder expectations and regulatory requirements continue to rise, organisations are increasingly gaining competitive advantage by integrating their financial, sustainability, and risk data for more streamlined management and reporting. During a recent Workiva Accelerate event in Helsinki, KPMG hosted roundtable discussions with industry leaders and practitioners to explore these challenges and opportunities. This article highlights the key insights and emerging best practices from those discussions, with a particular spotlight on the evolution of integrated approaches.
Evolving regulatory landscape and ESG reporting
There has been significant development in ESG reporting and a steady rise in expectations placed upon it. The first year of CSRD reporting was largely about “getting the report done”. Time was short, resource needs were generally underestimated, and organizations faced a suite of new requirements. The finance function typically assumed responsibility for the overall reporting process; however, limited previous collaboration with Sustainability teams called for new ways of working.
Whereas the amount of new regulation in a short time has felt overwhelming for many organizations, regulation is essential for tackling for example climate, environmental, and social challenges – areas where market mechanisms alone have proven insufficient, especially given their shared, cross-border nature and lack of clearly defined ownership. Recent regulatory back-pedalling in the EU is a response to the rapid pace of new rules, concerns over the competitiveness of EU companies, as well as geopolitical and trade tensions.
Data quality, technology, and value creation
Reliable, complete, up-to-date, and third-party verified data and disclosures are increasingly recognised as essential, not only for meeting regulatory requirements but also as a foundation for value creation through reporting.
Integrated technology solutions across finance, sustainability and risk functions, such as those provided by Workiva, play a central role in improving reporting consistency and quality, addressing compliance needs and enabling effective cross-functional collaboration. Implementing such platforms helps organisations break down silos, streamline processes and strengthen the reliability of reporting outcomes.
Technological solutions and AI are expected to play an increasingly significant role in supporting data quality, streamlining reporting processes, and facilitating assurance. Further development of AI as part of these integrated solutions, along with practical demonstrations and guidance on their usage, will greatly benefit users striving for excellence in reporting and decision-making.
Effective ESG reporting – especially when designed to clearly tell a company’s value creation story – can translate sustainability efforts into financial terms (EUR). This approach helps companies to prioritize sustainability initiatives and balance investments between sustainability and other business areas competing for corporate capex and opex budgets.
Cross-functional collaboration and operating models
Effective compliance and reporting require close collaboration between finance, sustainability, legal, IT and all business units across the value chain. Management’s role in fostering this cross-functional integration is crucial. Many organizations are now developing and implementing target operating models to enable sustainable transformation; both internal and external reporting serve to monitor the effectiveness of these models, track outcomes, and identify when action plans or targets need adjusting.
Future trends and challenges
Looking ahead, several key trends are emerging: the increasing importance of AI and analytics in data management and reporting, the need for scenario planning, and expanding assurance requirements for non-financial data. This means that organizations must remain proactive, continuously invest in evolving skills and technology, and adapt to changing regulatory and market landscapes.
