Cse research for sustainability reports north america january 2016

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Sustainability Reporting Trends in
North America
Most Active Sectors and Widely Used Guidelines

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Welcome to CSE’s Research of Sustainability (CSR) Reporting Trends in North America 2015.
This report presents the sustainability reporting trends for the reporting period of 2014. The Sustainability
Reports of four hundred and fifteen companies from United States and Canada were analyzed, many of them
included in the Fortune 500 list of companies.
Enjoy the reading
Nikos Avlonas
Founder and President CSE

© 2015 CSE 3
Contents
Executive Summary ........................................................................................................................................................4
Major Trends ..................................................................................................................................................................5
About this Research........................................................................................................................................................6
Methodology ..................................................................................................................................................................7
Introduction....................................................................................................................................................................8
Key Findings....................................................................................................................................................................9
Sectors with High Volume of Sustainability Reports...................................................................................................9
Profile of the Companies – Organizations.................................................................................................................12
Most Frequent Terms Used for Reporting ................................................................................................................16
Size of the Reports....................................................................................................................................................17
Most Frequent Standards and Guidelines for Reporting .......................................................................................... 19
Use, Application and Compliance to GRI ..................................................................................................................22
Rise of External Assurance........................................................................................................................................26
Conclusions...................................................................................................................................................................28
About CSE Services ....................................................................................................................................................... 31
Glossary ........................................................................................................................................................................32

© 2015 CSE 4
Executive Summary
The current research by the Centre for Sustainability and Excellence is intended to provide a useful
representation of the current state regarding Sustainability (Corporate Social Responsibility) reporting by
companies and organizations that are based in North America. It is intended for a number of stakeholder
groups who are interested in the subject, such as investors, business leaders, company boards, CSR and
sustainability professionals, NGOs, customers, academics and students.
It examines 415 unique sustainability reports for the 2014 reporting period, published by companies and
organizations based in North America. The research examines a number of characteristics regarding the
companies and organizations (such as sectors, size, ownership) and their reporting practices (such as
standards and guidelines used, extent of use of most common reporting guidelines, external assurance
practices).
The sectors with the highest reporting presence in the research sample are Financial Services, Energy and
Energy Utilities, Mining and Food & Beverage. The majority of the companies that publish a sustainability
report in North America are from the U.S.A. In both countries, most of the companies that published a
sustainability report for the 2014 are public companies (84.4% in the U.S. and 76.0% in Canada). There is a
significant percentage of Small-Medium Enterprises in both countries that published a sustainability report
for the 2014 reporting period (7.6% in the U.S.A. and 4.0% in Canada).
The two most frequently used terms, in both the U.S. and Canada, for these reports are “Sustainability
Report” and “Corporate (Social) Responsibility Report”. Report size ranges from a few pages to several
hundred pages. The reports, which have been conducted according to the Reporting Guidelines of the Global
Reporting Initiative (including the GRI Referenced reports), are considerably larger in size than the non-GRI
reports (74 to 37 pages respectively in the U.S. and 67 to 25 pages respectively in Canada).
Using specific guidelines for conducting these reports is a growing trend and adds value, transparency and
reliability to the report. 66% of the companies that published a sustainability report for the 2014 reporting
period used the Reporting Guidelines of the Global Reporting Initiative, while another 11% of the reports
used the Reporting Guidelines of the GRI as a reference. Globally, more than 50% of the reporting
companies and organizations seek external assurance for their reports, but the research demonstrates that in
North America, 69% of the reports that were conducted by using the reporting guidelines of the GRI, have
not sought external assurance.

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Major Trends
 There are some business sectors in North America that stand out for their sustainability reporting presence and
activity. These sectors are the financial services sector, the energy & energy utilities sector, the mining sector
and the food & beverage sector. These sectors are the most active in the specifics of their business activities
and operations. For example, in the financial sector sustainability reporting is a means for companies to show
clients, and society in general, their responsible profile and operations, while it is a means to communicate
with investors and attract new ones. The energy and mining sectors are active in the sustainability reporting
field due to the high environmental and social impact they have on the areas where they operate. In the U.S.
the most active sector is the financial services sector and in Canada the most active sector is the mining sector.
 There is a clearly visible trend of public (listed) companies to publish sustainability reports in order to disclose
information and be transparent about their sustainability performance. More than 1000 Sustainability Reports
are expected to be published in the next 2 years in North America.
 In both countries (U.S. & Canada) most of the companies that publish sustainability reports are Large and
Multinational Enterprises. Their national and international scale of their operations and impacts makes
reporting on their sustainability performance a necessity in order to keep their social and environmental
license to operate, while at the same time avoiding ESG risks.
 There is a growing trend for Small-Medium Enterprises to publish sustainability reports in order to increase
their transparency, attract customers and grow their business. The number of SMEs, which publish
sustainability reports, is expected to grow in the following years.
 The reporting guidelines of the Global Reporting Initiative remain the most widely used reporting guidelines
for conducting sustainability reports. GRI Reporting Guidelines adds value and enhances some of the benefits
of conducting a sustainability report such as improving processes and systems, progressing vision and
strategy, reducing compliance costs and gaining a competitive advantage. Surprisingly, there are still large
brands which do not use GRI or other guidelines, raising questions about their level of transparency and
credibility of the data they have disclosed.
 The global trends clearly indicate that companies and organizations seek external assurance for their
sustainability reports. The percentage of companies and organizations in North America that seek external
assurance remains well below the global average, which is 63% for the world’s biggest companies. There are
issues of transparency and credibility due to the differences between self-disclosure of data and externally
assuring them.
 There are a number of ways a company or organization can choose to report on its sustainability performance.
Sustainability reports vary in
sizes (ranging from 60 to 80
pages), a variation which is
mostly dependent on the
intended audience of the report
and the use of alternative
reporting techniques (such as
online reports and the use of
microsites). There is a growing
trend of using online means of
communicating sustainability
reports, and there is a
considerable percentage of
companies and organizations
which provide reports only

© 2015 CSE 6
online. Finally, reports which have been conducted according to the reporting guidelines of the GRI are
considerably larger than the ones which have been conducted without any particular reporting guideline.
About this Research
The current research by the Centre for Sustainability and Excellence is intended to provide a useful
representation of the current state regarding Sustainability (Corporate Social Responsibility) reporting by
companies that are based in North America. It is intended for a number of stakeholder groups who are
interested in the subject, such as investors, business leaders, company boards, CSR and sustainability
professionals, NGOs, customers, academics and students.
The goals of the research are to identify new trends
on Sustainability Reporting and :
 Examine which sectors are more active in
sustainability reporting.
 Examine the characteristics of the companies
that publish sustainability reports.
 Examine the extent of the use of standards
and guidelines for publishing sustainability
reports (such as the Global Reporting
Initiative and other guidelines).
 Examine the compliance and application
level of the reports which were conducted
using the GRI’s reporting guidelines.
 Examine the practices for seeking external
assurance for the sustainability report.

© 2015 CSE 7
Methodology
The research was based on a study of sustainability-corporate responsibility reports by companies based in
North America. It is based on publicly available information in standalone sustainability (corporate
responsibility) reports. It includes information provided both in pdf and printed reports as well as in web-
only. The main, but not exclusive, source of information was the reporting database of the Global Reporting
Initiative. The research examined unique reports that refer to the year 2014 (i.e. published in 2014 or 2015).
For the purposes of the research, 415 unique reports published by companies based in North America were
examined.
For each report the following information was collected and used in the research:
 Company/Organization Profile (name,
sector, country, size, type)
 Sustainability reporting profile
(reporting period, report size,
standards and guidelines used,
application and compliance level of
GRI’s reporting guidelines)
 External assurance practices, external
assurance standard and level.
The chosen sector categories are in
compliance with the sectors identified by the
Global Reporting Initiative.
The terminology used for reports varies between companies. The use of the term “sustainability reporting”
in this research should be taken to also cover the terms “sustainable development”, “corporate social
responsibility”, “corporate responsibility” and “corporate citizenship”

© 2015 CSE 8
Introduction
Sustainability Reports are a very useful tool for all companies who wish to communicate their actions
toward sustainable development. They include aspects that directly or indirectly relate to the company and
can be of interest to different stakeholder groups that are involved with the company, such as shareholders,
investors, employees, the public and others. Sustainability reporting is the tool an organization can use in
order to understand both its
exposure to risks and potential
business opportunities. It is also
the process of collecting and
analyzing information and data
(qualitative and quantitative),
necessary for creating long term
value and resistance to
environmental and social change.
Sustainability reporting is
gradually becoming an essential
business management tool, since
it will assist in convincing
investors of the organization’s
long term existence. The need of
companies to communicate
properly their responsibility led to the creation and the use of internationally recognized guidelines on
reporting, such as the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) Reporting Guidelines. The question is no longer
“should we report?” but “what and how should we report?”.

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Key Findings
Sectors with High Volume of Sustainability Reports
The companies that have published Sustainability Reports for the 2014 reporting period belong to various
sectors. The sectors with the highest presence in the research sample, regardless of whether the organization
has used any reporting guidelines for publishing the report, are : Financial Services (11.3%), Energy and
Energy Utilities (10.6%), Mining (7.5%) and Food and Beverage (6.7%). The following table shows the
sectors to which the 415 companies and organizations, which published a sustainability report for the 2014
reporting period, belong .
Sector % of total
number of
companies
examined
Financial Services 11.3%
Energy and Energy Utilites 10.6%
Mining 7.5%
Food and Beverage 6.7%
Healthcare Services and Products 5.3%
Equipment 4.8%
Real Estate 4.3%
Chemicals 3.4%
Retailers 3.4%
Telecommunications 2.7%
Automotive 2.2%
Public-Government-State Agency 2.2%
Computers 1.9%
Technology Hardware 1.9%
Aviation 1.9%
Commercial Services 1.9%
Railroad 1.9%
Construction 1.7%
Media 1.7%
Household and Personal Products 1.4%
Tourism and Leisure 1.2%
Conglomerates 1.2%
Forest and Paper Products 1.2%
Other (sectors with less than 1.0% each, such as NGOs, Waste
Management, Consumer Durables, Textiles and Apparel,
Agriculture, Logistics, Tobacco, etc.)
17.8%
Table 1: Sectors of companies which have conducted sustainability report for the 2014 reporting period.

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Breaking down the sectors by country, the top sectors in the USA are Financial Services, Food & Beverage
and Energy & Energy Utilities, while in Canada the top sectors are Mining, Financial Services and Energy
& Energy Utilities (table 3).
Sector (US Companies) % of total
number of
companies
examined
Energy and Energy Utilities 9.8%
Healthcare Products and Services 7.0%
Equipment 5.4%
Chemicals 4.1%
Real Estate 3.8%
Retailers 3.2%
Automotive 2.5%
Computers 2.5%
Mining 2.5%
Aviation 2.2%
Commerical Services 2.2%
Railroad 1.9%
Telecommunication 1.9%
Construction 1.6%
Media 1.6%
Tourism and Leisure 1.6%
Conglomerates 1.3%
Consumer Products 1.3%
NGOs 1.3%
Other (sectors with less than 1.0% each, such as Construction
Materials, Consumer Durables, Textiles and Apparel, Waste
Management, Logistics, Agriculture etc.)
14.3%
Table 2: Sectors of US companies which have conducted a sustainability report for the 2014 reporting
period.

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Table 3: Sectors of Canadian companies which have conducted sustainability report for the 2014 reporting
period.
Sector (Canadian Companies) % of total
number of
companies
examined
Mining 23.0%
Real Estate 6.0%
Equipment 3.0%
Retailers 3.0%
Agriculture 2.0%
Aviation 2.0%
Railroad 2.0%
Media 2.0%
Construction 2.0%
Other (sectors with less than 1.0% each, such as
Conglomerates, Consumer Durables, Automotive, Chemicals,
Commercial Services, Textiles and Apparel etc.)
9.0%

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Profile of the Companies – Organizations
The research focuses on sustainability reports published by companies and organizations based in North
American. 76.0% of these companies and organizations are from U.S.A., and 24.0% are from Canada.
Image 1: Country of origin of the companies and organizations which have published a sustainability report
for the 2014 reporting period.
Most of the companies that publish a sustainability report in North America are large companies (49.9%),
while 43.1% of the companies are Multinational Enterprises (MNE’s). A small, but considerable, percentage
(7.0%) is Small-Medium Enterprises (SME’s).
Image 2: Size of the companies/organizations which have published a sustainability report for the 2014
reporting period.
USA
(76%)
Canada
(24%)
Large
(50%)
MNE
(43%)
SME
(7%)

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In the U.S. there is a balance between the number of Large (46.8%) and Multinational (45.5%)companies
that published a sustainability report for the 2014 reporting period (image 3), while in Canada most (60%)
of the companies, that published a sustainability report, were Large companies (image 4). The percentage of
SME’s publishing a sustainability report is far greater in the U.S. (7.6%) than in Canada (4.0%).
Image 3: Size of the U.S. companies/organizations which have published a sustainability report for the 2014
reporting period.
Image 4: Size of Canadian companies/organizations which have published a sustainability report for the
2014 reporting period.
Most of the companies/organizations that publish sustainability reports are Listed/Public Companies
(82.4%)
Large
(47%)
MNE
(45%)
SME
(8%)
Large
(60%)
MNE
(36%)
SME
(4%)

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Image 5: Status of the companies which have published a sustainability report for the 2014 reporting
period.
In the U.S. the percentage of public companies that published a corporate sustainability report for the 2014
reporting period is 84.4% (image 6), while in Canada the percentage is 76.0%.
Image 6: Status of the U.S. companies which have published a sustainability report for the 2014 reporting
period.
Private
Companies
(Not listed)
(18%)
Public
Companies
(Listed)
(82%)
Private
Companies
(Not listed)
(16%)
Public
Companies
(Listed)
(84%)

© 2015 CSE 15
Image 7: Status of the Canadian companies which have published a sustainability report for the 2014
reporting period.
Private
Companies
(Not listed)
(24%)
Public
Companies
(Listed)
(76%)

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Most Frequent Terms Used for Reporting
There are a number of terms used for these reports by the companies in North America. Since there are no
guidelines or standards, when it comes to naming these reports, each company/organization is free to choose
the title which best suits the interests, interpretations and intended audience of the company/organization
and their reports. Nevertheless, there are two terms, which are most commonly used, “Sustainability Report”
and “Corporate (Social) Responsibility Report”. This trend can be observed in both the U.S. and Canada,
with similar percentages for each term in both countries.
Image 8: Most frequent terms used by companies/organizations which published a sustainability report for
the 2014 reporting period.
Sustainability
Report
(36%)
Corporate
(Social)
Responsibility
Report
(33%)
Other
(31%)

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Size of the Reports
There is a number of ways a company or organization can choose to report on its sustainability performance.
Sustainability reports vary in size, a variation which mostly depends on the intended audience of the report
and the use of alternative reporting techniques (such as online reports and the use of microsites). Companies
often chose to separate the GRI Index (the disclosures and indicators required by the GRI’s reporting
guidelines) from the sustainability report, a choice which results in a less technical and more user friendly
report, while at the same time maintaining the availability of the quantititative, technical data. The average
size of reports is 63 pages (65 in the U.S. and 59 in Canada). In both countries there is a considerable
difference between GRI (inclusing GRI Referenced Reports) and Non-GRI Reports. In the U.S. a GRI
Report has an average of 74 pages, while a non-GRI report an average of 37 pages. Similarly, in Canada, a
GRI report has an average of 67 pages, while a non-GRI report an average of 25 pages. In general report size
ranges from a few pages up to several hundred pages (the longest report examined in the research was more
than 600 pages). Online reports account for 8.9% of the reports in the U.S. and 10% in Canada. Online GRI
reports (including GRI referenced reports) account for 6.8% of the reports in the U.S. and 8.5% in Canada.
Finnaly, non-GRI online reports account for 15% of the reports in the U.S. and 16.7% of the reports in
Canada.
Image 9: Report size (page numbers) for the 2014 reporting period.
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
GRI and GRI
Referenced
Reports (page
number)
Non-GRI Reports
(page number)
Total Report Size
(page number)

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Image 10: Online reports for the 2014 reporting period
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
18
GRI and GRI
Referenced
Online Reports
(%)
Non-GRI Online
Reports (%)
Total Online
Reports (%)

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Most Frequent Standards and Guidelines for Reporting
There are a number of standards and guidelines each company/organization can refer to for conducting their
sustainability report. The choice depends on the reporting maturity of the company/organization, on the
audience of the report, on the specific pillar (social, economic, environmental) the company/organization has
the most impact upon, or wishes to focus on, and on a number of other parameters. The most commonly
used reporting guidelines are the guidelines of the Global Reporting Initiative.
GRI promotes the use of sustainability reports as a tool for companies/organizations to become more
sustainable and increase their contribution towards sustainable development. In order to achieve this goal,
the GRI has created the reporting guidelines for conducting a sustainability report. 66% of the companies
that published a sustainability report for the 2014 reporting period used one of the versions (G3, G3.1, and
G4) of the Reporting Guidelines of the Global Reporting Initiative. 11% of the reports are characterized as
“GRI Referenced”, i.e. reports which have used the Reporting Guidelines of the GRI as a reference but have
not followed the Guidelines. Hence, 77% of the reports examined in the research have used, fully or
partially, the guidelines of the Global Reporting Initiative. Finally, 23% of the reports were created either by
following other standards and guidelines (e.g. UNGC, ISO26000) or by not following any standards or
guidelines.
Image 11: Use of the GRI’s Reporting Guidelines by the companies which have published a sustainability
report for the 2014 reporting period.
In Canada, 73% of the reports for the 2014 reporting period were conducted using the guidelines of the
Global Reporting Initiative, while in the U.S. 63% of the reports were conducted using the guidelines of the
Global Reporting Initiative.
GRI
(66%)
GRI
Referenced
(11%)
Non-GRI
(23%)

© 2015 CSE 20
Image 12: Use of the GRI’s Reporting Guidelines by Canadian companies which have published a
sustainability report for the 2014 reporting period.
Image 13: Use of the GRI’s Reporting Guidelines by USA companies which have published a sustainability
report for the 2014 reporting period.
It is common practice in sustainability reports to include information and data which is required by other
standards and guidelines, but has direct correlation with the three pillars of sustainability, i.e. society,
economy and the environment. Hence, 32.8% of the reports include information about the
company/organization’s compliance with the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP), 12.3% include information
about the company/organization’s compliance with the 10 Principles of the United Nation’s Global Compact
GRI
(73%)
GRI
Referenced
(9%)
Non-GRI
(18%)
GRI
(63%)
GRI
Referenced
(11%)
Non-GRI
(26%)

© 2015 CSE 21
(UNGC), and 3.6% include information about compliance with the Guidelines of the Organization for
Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD Guidelines).
Standard – Guidelines % of reports
containing
information and
data about each
standard/guideline
Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) 77.0%
Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) 32.8%
United Nation’s Global Compact (UNGC) 12.3%
Guidelines of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and
Development (OECD Guidelines)
3.6%
International Finance Corporation (IFC) 3.1%
ISO 26000 2.2%
Table 4: Standards, Guidelines and Reporting Guidelines referred in the reports for the 2014 reporting
period.

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Use, Application and Compliance to GRI
By examining only the companies/organizations that have used one of the versions of the GRI’s Reporting
Guidelines for conducting their sustainability (CSR) reports it can be determined that the sectors with the
most reporting companies/organizations are Mining (10.7%), Financial Services (10.3%) and Energy and
Energy Utilities (9.2%).
Sector % of total
number of
companies
examined
Mining 10.7%
Equipment 5.1%
Real Estate 5.1%
Chemicals 4.8%
Healthcare Services and Products 4.8%
Retailers 3.3%
Automotive 2.6%
Commercial Services 2.6%
Aviation 2.2%
Computers 2.2%
Construction 1.5%
Consumer Products 1.5%
Railroad 1.5%
Textiles and Apparel 1.1%
Other (sectors with less than 1.0% each, such as
Conglomerates, Construction Materials, Logistics, NGOs,
Waste Management, Agriculture, Media etc.)
14.0%
Table 4: Sectors of companies which have conducted sustainability (CSR) report using one of the versions of
the GRI’s Reporting Guidelines for the 2014 reporting period.

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40% of the reports were created using the latest version of the reporting guidelines (G4) which will be the
only version recognized by the GRI for reports published after the 31st
of December 2015.
Image 14: Use of the different versions of the GRI’s Reporting Guidelines by the companies which have
published a sustainability report for the 2014 reporting period.
Another important parameter is the application level of the reports which have been conducted using the G3
and G3.1 versions of the GRI’s Reporting Guidelines. The application levels (A, B and C) communicate the
number of Aspects covered in the report and reflect the transparency level with respect to the reporting
guideline. They are not to be mistaken as indicators of the companies/organizations sustainability
performance, or as an indicator of the reports quality. The “+” sign next to each application level indicates
that the company/organization has sought external assurance for the report content. Specifically, 28.6% of
the reports conducted using the G3/G3.1 versions have an application level B, 19% application level C,
while 29.5% of the companies/organizations don’t declare the application level of their report.
G3 (9%)
G3.1 (17%)
G4 (40%)

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Image 15: Application level of the G3/G3.1 sustainability reports for the 2014 reporting period.
In the new version of the GRI’s Reporting Guidelines (G4) the application levels have changed and they are
now called compliance levels. The options are two: in accordance core and in accordance comprehensive.
The difference between the two levels lies in the number of indicators the company/organization has chosen
to disclose in the report for each identified material issue. In the “core” option the company/organization
chooses at least one indicator per material aspect, while in the “comprehensive” option the
company/organization must disclose all the available indicators for each identified material aspect. The
majority of the companies/organizations (71.5%) have chosen the “core” option, while a significant
percentage (23%) has not declared a compliance level.
A (6,7%)
A+ (6,7%)
B (28,6%)
B+ (7,6%)
C (19,0%)
C+ (1,9%)
Undeclared
(29,5%)

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Image 16: Compliance level of the G4 sustainability reports for the 2014 reporting period.
Core (71%)
Comprehensive
(6%)
Undeclared
(23%)

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Rise of External Assurance
One element of the sustainability reports that yields internal and external benefits, and increases the trust and
confidence levels in the areas of governance, management and relationship with stakeholders is the external
assurance of the Sustainability Reports. The benefits from the existence of external assurance include an
increase of awareness, reliability and trust, the reduction of risks and the increase of value, the strengthening
of internal management and reporting systems, improved communication with stakeholders, etc. According
to the GRI, seeking external assurance is not mandatory, in order for a report to adhere to the “in-
accordance” compliance levels. The GRI recommends that companies/organizations seek external assurance
for their sustainability reports. The majority (69%) of the reports, which were conducted using the GRI’s
guidelines, have not been externally assured.
Image 17: Existence or not of external assurance for the GRI sustainability reports for the 2014 reporting
period.
Equally important to the existence of an external assurance is the process of external assurance to follow one
of the internationally accepted assurance standards. Two of the most commonly used, internationally
recognized, assurance standards are the AccountAbility 1000 Assurance Standard (AA1000AS) and the
International Standard on Assurance Engagement (ISAE3000). Most of the external assurances (38.6%)
have been conducted without following an assurance standard. 31.3% of the external assurances have been
conducted using the ISAE3000, while 19.3% the AA1000AS (image 16). 3% of the external assurances
were conducted with more than one assurance standard.
Externally
Assured
(31%)
Not Assured
Externally
(69%)

© 2015 CSE 27
Image 18: Use of assurance standards for the external assurance of sustainability reports.
AA1000AS
(19%)
ISAE3000
(31%)
Other
National
General and
Sustainabilit
y Assurance
Standards
(11%)
No External
Assurance
Standard
(39%)

© 2015 CSE 28
Conclusions
Sectors with High Volume of Sustainability Reports
The sectors with the highest presence in the research sample, regardless of whether the organization
has used any reporting guidelines for publishing the report, are, Financial Services (11.3%), Energy
and Energy Utilities (10.6%), Mining (7.5%) and Food and Beverage (6.7%).
The top sectors in the USA are Energy & Energy Utilities (9.8%), Financial Services (8.3%) and
Food & Beverage (8.3%), while in Canada the top sectors are Mining (23.0%), Financial Services
(20.0%) and Energy & Energy Utilities (13.0%).
Profile of the Companies – Organizations
76.0% (314 companies and organizations) of these companies and organizations are from the U.S.A.,
and 24.0% (100 companies and organizations) are from Canada.
Most of the companies that publish a sustainability report in North America are large companies
(49.9%), while 43.1% of the companies are Multinational Enterprises (MNE’s).
A small, but considerable, percentage (7.0%) of the companies that publish a sustainability report are
Small-Medium Enterprises (SMEs).
Most of the companies/organizations that publish sustainability reports are Listed/Public Companies
(82.4%). In the U.S. the percentage of public companies that published a corporate sustainability
report for the 2014 reporting period is 84.4%, while in Canada the percentage is 76.0%.

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Most Frequent Terms Used for Reporting
Companies and organizations use a variety of terms to name their Reports. There is a wide range of
combinations of the terms “sustainability”, “corporate”, “citizenship”, “social”, “responsibility”,
“sustainable development” used by companies and organizations. Nevertheless, there are two terms
which are most commonly used, “Sustainability Report” and “Corporate Responsibility Report”.
This trend can be observed in both the U.S. and Canada.
Size of the Reports
In both countries, the size of the Sustainability Reports (including GRI based and GRI referenced
reports) is considerably larger than non-GRI Reports (74 to 37 pages)
A significant percentage of reports are online (8.9% in U.S. and 10% in Canada).
Most Frequent Standards and Guidelines for Reporting
66% of the companies that published a sustainability report for the 2014 reporting period used one of
the versions (G3, G3.1, and G4) of the Reporting Guidelines of the Global Reporting Initiative.
In Canada, 73% of the reports for the 2014 reporting period were conducted using the guidelines of
the Global Reporting Initiative.
11% of the reports are characterized as “GRI Referenced”, i.e. reports which have used the Reporting
Guidelines of the GRI as a reference but have not followed the Guidelines. Hence, 77% of the
reports examined in the research have used, fully or partially, the guidelines of the Global Reporting
Initiative.
23% of the reports were conducted either by following other standards and guidelines (e.g. UNGC,
ISO26000) or by not following any standards or guidelines.
32.8% of the reports include information about the company/organization’s compliance with the
Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP).
12.3% include information about the company/organization’s compliance with the 10 Principles of
the United Nation’s Global Compact (UNGC).
The company’s reputation or size is not an indicator of use or compliance with reporting standards
and guidelines. There are examples of well-known and multinational companies which have not used
any reporting guidelines (GRI or UNGC) for their sustainability reports, belonging to major sectors
such as the Financial and Technology sectors.
Use, Application and Compliance to GRI
The sectors with the most reporting companies and organizations, according to the guidelines of the
GRI, are Mining (10.7%), Financial Services (10.3%) and Energy and Energy Utilities (9.2%).
40% of the reports were created using the latest version of the reporting guidelines (G4) which will
be the only version recognized by the GRI for reports published after the 31st
of December 2015.
The compliance levels (“in-accordance core” and “in-accordance comprehensive”) communicate the
number of indicators the company/organization has chosen to disclose in the report for each
identified material issue. They are not to be mistaken as indicators of the company/organization’s
sustainability performance, or as an indicator of the reports quality. The majority of the
companies/organizations (71.5%) have chosen the “in-accordance core” option (at least one indicator
per material aspect), while a significant percentage (23%) have not declared a compliance level.

© 2015 CSE 30
Rise of External Assurance
In contrast with the global trends, which indicate that 54% of the reporters seek external assurance
for their sustainability (CSR) reports, 69% of the reports that were conducted by using the reporting
guidelines of the GRI, have not sought external assurance. There are two potential major barriers that
prevent companies and organizations seeking external assurance for their sustainability reports. The
first one is a lack of understanding of the importance and benefits of external assurance. The second
one is the cost of the external assurance process.
It is important to note that major reporting and disclosure organizations and indices, such as GRI
and CDP, request or recommend the external assurance of sustainability reports, in order for their
content to be verified and validated.
Most of the external assurances (38.6%) have been conducted without following an assurance
standard. 31.3% of the external assurances have been conducted using the ISAE3000, while 19.3%
the AA1000AS.
The company’s reputation or size is not an indicator of seeking external assurance for their GRI
sustainability reports. There are examples of well-known and multinational companies which have
not sought external assurance for their sustainability reports, belonging to sectors such as Computer
Hardwre, Equipment and Food & Beverage.

© 2015 CSE 31
About CSE Services (www.cse-net.org)
CSE is a leading boutique firm specialized in global sustainability (CSR) consulting, coaching and training. Since
2004, early entry into the international sustainability (CSR) services market, CSE has been assisting clients to
achieve higher performance, build brand loyalty and innovate through the continuous integration of sustainability
principles into their culture, products and/or services.
Public and private sector clients benefit from CSE expertise in serving diverse sectors, markets and organizational
cultures in the Americas, Europe, Asia and the Middle East.
Integrated Consulting Services from A to Z
Our services and web tools are designed to assist businesses and organizational leaders to understand and meet the
evolving international standards and frameworks, such as the United Nations Global Compact (UNGC), the
Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP), Green House Gas Protocol, the Dow
Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI), ISO 26000 guidelines and other local and international guidelines.
"CSE believes that investment in human capital through education, training and coaching is the single most
important determinant of future value for all organizations"
Consulting Services
 Sustainability and Materiality Assessment
 Sustainability Strategies
 Sustainability and Integrated Reporting
 External Verification and Assurance
 SROI and Stakeholder Engagement Programs
 Carbon Reduction and Product Life Cycle Analysis
 Supply Chain Sustainability
 Green Buildings and Events
Pioneering in Sustainability Education for the last 10 years
(www.sustainability-academy.org)
CSE is accredited by IEMA to provide global training to Sustainability Professionals and is also a
GRI organizational stakeholder. We have trained over 5,000 Sustainability Professionals from five
continents through on-site, online and group training. Those are the following :
Certified Sustainability Practitioner Program (Advanced Version) , Online Diploma on
Corporate Sustainability, Online Certificate for Sustainability Reporting , Online Certificate
for Carbon Footprint Reduction, Online Certificate on ESG Performance.
Our clients include Fortune 500 companies and organizations such as WalMart, United, NASA, Walgreens,
Lloyds Banking Group, Coca Cola, Oracle, Shell, Baker Hughes,Whole Foods, North Face, World Bank.

© 2015 CSE 32
Glossary
 Sustainability (CSR) Reporting: an organizational report that gives information about economic,
environmental, social and governance information. It is a method to internalize and improve an
organization’s commitment to sustainable development in a way that can be demonstrated to both
internal and external stakeholders.
 Global Reporting Initiative (GRI): an international independent standards organization that helps
businesses, government and other organizations understand and communicate their impacts on
issues relating to economic, social and environmental performance.
 Indicator (GRI): qualitative or quantitative information about results or outcomes associated with
the organization that is comparable and demonstrates change over time.
 Material Aspect (GRI): reflects the organization’s significant economic, environmental and
social impacts; or the aspects that substantially influence the assessments and decisions of
stakeholders.
 United Nations Global Compact (UNGC) is a United Nations initiative to encourage businesses
worldwide to adopt sustainable and socially responsible policies, and to report on their
implementation. The UN Global
Compact is a principle-based
framework for businesses, stating ten
principles in the areas of human
rights, labour, the environment and
anti-corruption.
 International Finance Corporation
Sustainability Framework (IFC): The
IFC, a member of the World Bank
Group, is the largest global
development institution focused on
the private sector in developing
countries. IFC’s Sustainability
Framework includes the Policy and
Performance Standards on Social and Environmental Sustainability. It provides the private sector
clients with a clear and comprehensive view of requirements early in their engagement with IFC.
 ISO26000 provides guidelines for social responsibility (SR). Its goal is to contribute to global
sustainable development, by encouraging business and other organizations to practice social
responsibility to improve their impacts on their workers, their natural environments and their
communities.
 OECD Guidelines: The OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises are the most
comprehensive corporate responsibility instrument developed by governments in existence today.
They cover all major areas of business ethics and are addressed to all the activities of
multinational enterprises operating in or from the 42 adhering countries. The OECD Guidelines
also have a unique implementation mechanism to address issues arising from their non-
observance.

© 2015 CSE 33
 CDP (Carbon Disclosure Project) is an organization based in the United Kingdom which works
with shareholders and corporations to disclose the greenhouse gas emissions of major
corporations.
 AA1000AS (2008) assurance provides a comprehensive way of holding an organization
accountable for its management, performance, and reporting on sustainability issues by
evaluating the adherence of an organization to the AccountAbility Principles and the reliability of
associated performance information.
 ISAE3000 is a standard for assurance over non-financial information. ISAE3000 is issued by the
International Federation of Accountants (IFAC). The standard consists of guidelines for the
ethical behavior, quality management and performance of an ISAE3000 engagement. Generally
ISAE3000 is applied for audits of internal control, sustainability and compliance with laws and
regulations.
 MNE (Multinational
Enterprises) are organizations that owns
or controls production of products or
services in one or more countries other
than their home country.
 SME (Small Medium
Enterprises) are businesses whose
personnel numbers fall below certain
limits. Industry Canada defines a small
business as one with fewer than 100
paid employees and a medium-sized
business as one with at least 100 and
fewer than 500 employees. In the
United States, the Small Business
Administration sets small business
criteria based on industry, ownership structure, revenue and number of employees (the cap is
typically 500).
 Public Company: A company that has issued securities through an initial public offering (IPO)
and is traded on at least one stock exchange or in the over the counter market. Although a small
percentage of shares may be initially "floated" to the public, the act of becoming a public
company allows the market to determine the value of the entire company through daily trading.
 Private Company: A company whose ownership is private. As a result, it does not need to meet
the strict Securities and Exchange Commission filing requirements of public companies.

Cse research for sustainability reports north america january 2016

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