THE EUROPEAN REPORTING DIRECTIVE: IMPLEMENTING NEW TRANSPARENCY REGULATIONS

Interpreting vague requirements

Even companies possessing a great deal of reporting experience, however, struggled with the challenge of rather vague legislative texts. Many found, for instance, that risk definitions were not precise enough, and that the CSR-RUG also left too much scope for interpretation when it came to materiality definitions and key performance indicators. akzente has successfully supported over 30 companies in dealing with this challenge — from defining material topics all the way to the final review and publication. Some companies have integrated their non-financial report into their business report, while others have published it separately or as part of their sustainability report. The varied nature of the implementation — and its difficulties and effects — was demonstrated by a large-scale reference study carried out by akzente on behalf of the German Global Compact Network and econsense.

An insight into the political process

The EU is currently revising the directive on non-financial reporting, and a public consultation has already been completed. In order to provide information on the development of the CSR Directive and to prepare companies for its implementation, akzente has launched the website www.csr-berichtspflicht.de. Here, regular insights from the political process in Brussels and Berlin can be found.