Communicating your sustainability report
Does your sustainability report actually reach its audience? Or does it just sit there, as a pdf, hidden somewhere on the website with few or no readers? Enact’s Reporting Network met last week to discuss how we become better at reaching our target audience and most material stakeholders with the information in the report.
One of the key takeaways from the meeting was the importance of identifying a clear target group for the report to ensure relevance and to allow for a clear communication strategy when disseminating the report.
As an illustrative best practice example, Anna Lidström, Sustainability Director at Spendrups, talked at the meeting. She shared Spendrup’s considerations about making their sustainability report more easily accessible to stakeholders through digitalisation, small films and targeted use of social media channels. Rather than ‘just’ having a pdf of the sustainability report, the more engaging, digital approach has increased the number of readers and earned the company positive feedback. Check out the digital report by Spendrups here.
Enact’s Reporting Network meets 4-6 times a year to discuss different themes relating to sustainability reporting – from trends to standards, and from best practise to the most difficult challenges. Upcoming themes for the network in 2018 include:
- ‘Reporting on the SDGs’, focusing on how companies can integrate the Global Goals in their sustainability reporting;
- ‘Dealing with Data’, with a focus on how to work more efficiently with sustainability data for reporting purposes and improve processes and flow;
- ‘Getting ready for the next reporting season’, a half-day seminar aiming at providing inspirations and tools as well as discussing ideas and good advice.
The format of the network meetings differs between breakfast seminars, AW sessions with social elements and longer learning-focused seminars. The network is open to companies working with sustainability reporting, and currently consist of 20 + companies from many different sectors and in varying sizes. The network is open to new members throughout the year. Read more about the network on Enact Labs page in the Services area.
