Gold Standard Sustainability Reporting by Gbangbola Kye; Lawler Nicole;

Author:Gbangbola, Kye; Lawler, Nicole;
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Taylor & Francis Group
Published: 2020-03-20T00:00:00+00:00

Set SMART goals and targets

Firms that set tangible, public sustainability goals improve their financial and environmental performance. When goals are set, a company will typically work hard to meet them and are four to five times more likely to improve their performance compared with those who do not set goals. Indeed, firms with five to ten goals show the best performance improvement, supporting the current paradigm of GRI: report only what is material.

GRI recommends that organisations establish targets for their material topics and related management approach and topics. KPMG’s International Survey of Corporate Sustainability Reporting 2017 expresses concern that 13% of reports have no targets for material issues.

Defining targets can be a lengthy process for an organisation. Targets are public commitments that normally have to be embraced by the organisation as a whole; they send a positive message to shareholders and investors.

The first step is to be aware of the current performance related to each material topic and related management approach and topics. Second, it is important to know what could be improved internally and what is considered the best practice outside of the organisation. The organisation can then evaluate how much time and resources should be invested to achieve realistic targets.

Remember, targets should be SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound) and derived from a process of listening to internal and external stakeholders.

The examples in Table 5.2 give some typical, simple targets that can be set: cutting energy use and greenhouse gas emissions and reducing water consumption and waste, all of which result in cost savings and boost the bottom line and which can result in increased employee satisfaction and productivity:

In the most sophisticated organisations, a goal leader supported by multi-disciplinary teams manages each corporate sustainability goal. An increasing number of companies tie executive remuneration to sustainability goals.

Similar to the Define phase, it is good if internal and select external stakeholders are involved in setting targets.

A final point of philosophical integrity: when the bigger picture involves capacity-building and knowledge-sharing, especially between OECD- and non-OECD-based organisations, delivery of targets can be central to building a lasting legacy and organisational profile.

Table 5.2 SMART Targets Topic/Disclosure Target Where Material Why Is Target SMART? Goal Leader

302–4 Reduction of energy consumption GJ +2% on 2006/07 baseline Within and outside Climate change, society and savings Yes Position

303–1 Water withdrawal by source m3/yr 11% reduction of the 2006/07 baseline Within and outside Climate change, society and savings Yes

305–5 Reduction of GHG emissions kgCO2 31% reduction on 2006/07 baseline Within and outside Climate change, society and savings Yes

411–1 Indigenous people

human rights MM5 and MM6 (Mining and Metals Sector Disclosure) All sites Within and outside Building strong relationships and respecting human rights Yes

304–2 Significant impacts of activities, products and services on biodiversity

All sites by 2015 – a full suite

of appropriate biodiversity management plans

(BMPs) in place Within

Responsible stewardship Yes

And now for the bombshell! Upon coming to understand the framework, you may have noticed the following:

1It is possible to produce a GRI Standards compliant report without disclosing any material topics. It may just be possible if your business is not selling anything and does not use resources.

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