Environmental, social and governance (ESG) related topics are reshaping business operations, performance measurement, and risk management, introducing both new challenges and opportunities.

Many firms have been voluntarily reporting on their ESG performance. Now, with new regulatory requirements, obtaining assurance over the ESG information that a company discloses is becoming more important.

KPMG’s inaugural ESG Assurance Maturity Index has been developed to help inform companies, investors and wider stakeholders on the current landscape. It comes at a pivotal time, as companies globally undertake a critical journey to prepare for new ESG regulatory requirements.

The index and associated research were designed to offer a path forward and provide a roadmap with guidance on areas to focus on, and the steps to take to become ready for ESG assurance.

The views of senior executives and board members at 750 companies across industries, global regions and revenue sizes were captured to gauge their relative ESG Assurance maturity.

Respondents were ranked as either Leaders (top 25%), Advancers (next 50%), or Beginners (bottom 25%) based on their maturity. 

To help businesses become ready for ESG assurance, KPMG have also put together these five top tips:

1. Determine applicable ESG reporting standards

2. Build robust ESG governance and develop right skills

3. Identify the applicable ESG disclosures and data requirements across functions

4. Digitize ESG data processes and ensure high quality data

5. Work with the value chain to collect ESG information

For more insights from KPMG’s experts on this subject click here to watch their ‘Road To Readiness’ video, and click here to read the Road To Readiness ESG Assurance Maturity Index 2023 report.