The latest KPMG research revealed that only 29% of companies feel ready to have their ESG data independently assured, a mere 4% increase from 9 months ago.
The findings have been presented in KPMG’s annual ESG Assurance Maturity Index in which over 1,000 senior executives and board members from organisations across industries participated.
The research classifies the participating organisations into leaders (29%), advancers (46%) and beginners (26%) and calculates a maturity score to assess companies’ progress in preparing for the ESG reporting and demand. The companies believe that becoming ESG assurance-ready goes beyond compliance with some expected benefits being a greater market share (56%), decreased costs (48%), and new business models (46%).
“Getting ready for ESG assurance is a journey – and companies are finding that the further they get in that journey, the more there is to do and learn. The goal line is continually evolving. That is why progress may appear slow, even though many companies have truly been taking significant steps. This effort will pay off – Boards are increasing their focus on it and Leaders are reporting a growing range of benefits as the discipline involved in getting ready for ESG assurance permeates across systems, processes, controls and governance,” said Larry Bradley Global Head of Audit at KPMG International.
The research also found that the higher a company’s revenue, the more likely it is to be advanced in its ESG assurance preparations. For companies with revenues of over $100bn, the score peaks at 69.5 (on a 0-100 scale), while for those with revenues under $5bn it is 39.3.
Also, France tops the scores (52.4) as it did in 2023, while Germany has moved up strongly to second place (52.3) and Japan is third (50.2).