An ESG report contains information on the environmental, social, and governance impact of a company. Consumers and other stakeholders such as investors and shareholders tend to use these reports as an indication of a company’s approach to issues such as the environment, the community, and society at large.
Why Release an ESG Report?
There are multiple benefits of releasing an annual report that states and assesses your approach to environmental, social, and governance issues. Here are just a few.
- Increase trust with consumers, shareholders, and other stakeholders.
- Hold your company and its leadership team accountable for decisions made regarding sustainability, diversity and inclusion, and more.
- Learn lessons from where you’ve gone wrong in the past and how you can improve your approach to issues going forward.
New to writing ESG reports and not sure where to start? Learn from the masters. We’ve collated a list of companies whose ESG reports stand out for all the right reasons, whether that’s being visually appealing and easy to follow or having statistics that paint the company’s approach to ESG issues in a positive light.
Here are some of the best ESG reports from some of the biggest names in various industries.
Pfizer
Pfizer rose to prominence during the COVID-19 pandemic when they were one of the pharmaceutical companies that created a vaccine that put the pandemic to rest.
As well as boasting a long history of pharmaceutical creations, Pfizer aims to build a better world through its approach to corporate sustainability and social issues. This is shown in its ESG and sustainability report.
One of the things that Pfizer does especially well in its ESG report is storytelling. Pfizer uses case studies, which it calls ‘Impact Stories’ to tell readers about certain initiatives it implemented and the results.
Storytelling is a powerful tool that can help you build a connection with your readers while painting a picture of what your organisation stands for.
Pfizer’s report also contains a letter from the company’s CEO, which also adds a personal touch. Visual elements and key statistics are peppered throughout the 83-page report to make it easier to follow, even for skim readers.
As impressive as the layout and look of Pfizer’s ESG report is the content included. Pfizer discusses its approach to the health equity gap, which happens when certain demographics, countries, or parts of the world have worse access to healthcare than others.
Pfizer also includes numbers such as how many patients it’s treated – a whopping 1.3 billion via traditional channels.
Overall, Pfizer’s approach to reporting is a detail-heavy, transparent one, that connects readers with Pfizer by including storytelling and personal messages from the leadership.
Read Pfizer’s latest ESG report here.
Netflix
Netflix is one of the biggest entertainment companies in the game right now, so it’s natural that everybody wants to know what the streaming giant has to say about its sustainability performance and approach to human rights and labour standards.
Netflix’s ESG report is a 42-page document that outlines Netflix’s ESG performance so far and what they hope to improve. While the content is broken up into sections, it could include more visual elements to break up the blocks of text.
Netflix is in the unique position of being able to influence sustainability not only through its approach to its own GHG emissions, but also by influencing viewers through its media output.
One key example that Netflix draws attention to is the film Don’t Look Up, which premiered on Netflix. The movie deals with mainstream media’s inability to take climate change and its impact seriously, and had a huge viewership that drew attention to this important issue.
Another unique addition to the ESG report that makes it more interesting is Netflix’s ‘Lessons Learned’ section. This part of the report outlines what Netflix has learned over the past year and how this information will inform its future output.
Overall, while not as visually engaging as some of the reports on this list, Netflix’s ESG report is accurate and detailed, and gives us an insight into the values of the brand.
Take a look at Netflix’s ESG report here.
Worthington Industries
Worthington Industries consistently receives a good ESG rating from third-party rating companies – and for good reason. The manufacturing giant takes its approach to sustainability extremely seriously, as outlined in its most recent ESG report.
One of the best things about WI’s ESG report is the visuals. The report features graphs, inforgraphics, images, and other callouts and elements that help to break out the monotony of walls of text. Key statistics are made to stand out so even skim readers can get an accurate idea of Worthington Industries’ approach to ESG issues.
The report is helpfully broken down into sections on a contents page at the front of the report, and there’s an introduction from the CEO to follow. After an introduction to the report, WI gets into the meat of things, with information about its employee engagement rate (an impressive 75%) and percentage of diverse new hires in 2022 (49.2%).
As is to be expected with a manufacturing firm, there’s a big focus on the organisation’s approach to health and safety, as well as an entire section dedicated to the company’s environmental focus.
Impressively, Worthington Industries have diverted 96% of waste from landfills and reduced the intensity of its GHG emissions. The environmental data is handily broken down into tables towards the end of the 78-page report, making it easy to follow for people who are just interested in its sustainability performance.
Overall, Worthington Industries has produced an accurate, transparent, and detailed report, with nice visual elements that break up the text and make it easier for readers to get to the important information more quickly.
Read Worthington Industries’ ESG report here.
Apple
Apple is one of the biggest corporations in the world, which becomes important when considering the fact that giant corporations are responsible for a significant amount of the global warming we’re currently seeing.
Luckily, Apple’s ESG report does a good job of adequately setting out Apple’s approach and outlining how Apple is tackling both its effect on the environment and communities at large.
As you’d expect from a design-led company like Apple, the report is visually appealing. With 85 pages full of information, visual elements such as images and statistics callouts help to guide the reader through.
One thing Apple includes in its report that we liked, is a ‘Report highlights’ section at the start, which focuses on some key statistics that have formed a crucial role in Apple’s goal-setting exercises.
Included in this highlight reel are facts such as Apple reduced its overall emissions by 40% and achieved carbon neutrality for corporate emissions. In terms of social impact, Apple calls attention to its new privacy feature, which stopped apps from being able to track users without the users’ permission.
While the report is truly packed with information, there could have been a little more focus on what Apple has learned or reflections on aspects that haven’t gone as successfully as the leadership would have liked.
Nevertheless, Apple has provided an excellent example of how a research-rich, visually-appealing ESG report should look. You can use the technology giant’s ESG strategy to help your organisation approach this reporting.
Read Apple’s latest ESG report here.
Gap
A lot of attention has turned in recent years to ways in which the fashion industry impacts the environment. Fast fashion, in particular, has a detrimental impact not just on sustainability, but on labour standards and human rights abuses.
Gap aims to differentiate itself by setting out its ethical approach to both the environment and its supply chain in this ESG report. The report is full of colourful images, which help to break up the text and lead the reader through the 74 pages of information.
There’s a contents page at the start of the report, which helps readers navigate to the section that interests them the most. Like Apple’s report, there’s also a highlights section, which outlines some of Gap’s biggest achievements from 2021.
These highlights include 90% of Gap’s factories completing gender awareness training, 1 million women and girls reached by Gap’s programme since 2007, and 79% of cotton sourced from sustainable sources.
Gap has also updated its goals to match the increasing need for corporations to take bold actions that tackle climate change head-on. The fashion brand now intends to use 100% regenerative, organic, or recycled cotton by 2030, as well as 100% recycled polyester by 2030, and 50% by 2025.
Gap provides a good example of setting high standards and targets. The more ambitious you are with your climate goals, the more likely you are to make big, bold changes that make a serious difference to your carbon footprint.
After all, aiming for 100% renewable energy and only managing 80% is still better than setting yourself the goal of 50% renewable energy and not feeling motivated to increase it.
Overall, Gap’s report shows us that being ambitious with goals is a good thing and that the best ESG reports come accompanied by visual material and up-to-date statistics.
Read Gap’s latest ESG report here.
First Solar
First Solar is a solar energy company, so naturally, sustainability performance is a key concern for this organisation. This ESG report is a visual treat, which distils key statistics and information into easy-to-follow callouts and stand-out text.
After a message from the CEO at the start of this 69-page document, First Solar launches straight into key metrics that give consumers and shareholders alike an idea of how First Solar approaches business.
Within the first few pages of the report, we learn that First Solar has reduced manufacturing energy intensity by 8%, manufacturing water intensity by 32%, and manufacturing waste intensity by 9%.
One of the biggest names in third-party ESG rating providers, MSCI, gives First Solar an impressive AA rating for its report and ESG initiatives, while its claims of environmental benefits have been supported by more than 50 researchers from leading international institutions.
What’s especially impressive about First Solar’s approach to reporting is the way it tells its story using images. First Solar’s module recycling process, for example, is laid out in the document using a detailed diagram, that shows each step in a way that even novices can understand.
Making your information easily understandable is a must when writing an ESG report, especially if your industry is an especially complex one.
If you’re interested in learning a thing or two from First Solar’s in-depth ESG report, you can read it here.
Paramount Global
Paramount is a giant in the entertainment industry, and its ESG report is equally as entertaining. Paramount uses animated visuals and bright colours to keep the reader engaged throughout this 87-page document, which covers everything from Paramount’s sustainability practices to its internal workplace culture.
The contents page lays out exactly what’s contained within the report, while the first few pages are dedicated to words from the CEO and an introduction to Paramount Global. We find out some mind-boggling statistics, such as the number of hours of Paramount content consumed globally – a whopping 31.5 billion.
Paramount then gets into the meat of its findings in the following sections, where we find out impressive statistics, such as more than 50% of Paramount’s board being women.
As with Netflix, Paramount explores its on-screen content and the diversity and social impact of it, such as how many programmes or movies contain representation of underrepresented demographics.
Paramount points to its philanthropic efforts, including its support for Ukraine, which led the company to donate $1 million to support humanitarian relief. Paramount pledges to dedicate as much of its broadcasting as possible to shedding light on the climate crisis, through real-life stories, documentaries, and even drama series.
15.4% of the company’s global electricity consumption is now renewable, up from 13.6% in 2020. Thanks to the impressive statistics and peppering of visual content throughout, Paramount’s ESG report successfully communicates its goals and achievements.
Interested to find out more? Read Paramount’s ESG report here.
Accenture
Accenture is pretty much the gold standard of ESG reports. Regularly topping ESG rating lists, Accenture is a professional services company that takes its commitment to the environment and ethical practices seriously.
Its 2022 ESG report was known as its 360 Value Report 2022, and it reported on everything from Accenture’s supply chain to its cross-cultural diversity.
Complete with colourful visuals, the detailed 97-page document starts by outlining Accenture’s goals and the progress its made towards them. Accenture is aiming for net-zero emissions by 2025 and has so far managed to power its operations using 97% renewable electricity and reuse 98% of electronic waste.
Accenture is another excellent example of how bold goals inspire bold action. Since 2016 alone, the company has decreased its carbon emissions by an impressive 68%. Other key goals include eliminating single-use plastics and reusing or recycling all of its office furniture.
One of the best things about Accenture’s approach to ESG reporting is how detailed it is. Accenture leaves no stone unturned, and no topic without stats or data to back it up.
If you’re looking for a masterclass on how to create your organisation’s ESG report, read Accenture’s here.
National Grid
National Grid focuses on the distribution of gas and electricity within the UK. With the organisation having such an impact on energy use, consumers and other stakeholders are keen to find out how the energy giant is tackling sustainability.
That’s where its detailed ESG report comes in. Since National Grid is a public entity, there’s an added expectation of transparency and fairness, which National Grid certainly provides.
One of the best aspects of this 72-page document is how clearly and colourful it sets out key statistics. In the first few pages of the report, we find out that National Grid has decarbonised Britain’s electricity by 61% over the last nine years, and reduced Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 65%.
When it comes to social impact, National Grid has donated a whopping £2.8 million in grants to community projects since 2015, and colleagues have volunteered for 23,416 hours during the past year alone.
The report includes a statement from the Chair and a review by the Chief Executive, both of which help to give readers a better sense of National Grid’s values. Including case studies is another excellent way to engage readers, which National Grid does by reporting on its partnership with COP26. COP is one of the biggest events on the calendar for tackling the climate crisis.
For a more detailed look at National Grid’s ESG report, click here.
Georg Fischer
Georg Fischer’s ESG approach is so thorough and successful, the firm has actually won awards for being the best ESG reporter in its industry. The manufacturing giant set out its ESG metrics in its latest sustainability report, which covers everything from climate and energy to corporate citizenship.
Key figures are presented in graph and chart formats, making them easier to follow for readers. Georg Fischer sets out its goals against its current progress using these visuals.
The firm aims to have 70% of sales contributing to social or environmental benefits by 2025, for example, and its current percentage is 63%. More impressive statistics emerge as the report goes on, such as a reduction in carbon emissions, unrecycled waste intensity, and water intensity.
Georg Fischer’s transparency is unparalleled, with the firm rating its own progress against goals with a traffic light system to show how successful it’s been. If your organisation creates an ESG report, you should aim for the same level of accountability.
To read Georg Fischer’s ESG report in full, click here.
What We Can Learn From These ESG Reports
Many of these companies have high ESG ratings and excellent reputations for a reason. By taking an in-depth look at the reporting frameworks they use, you can better understand how to make your ESG Report a success. Here are a few things to consider.
- Readability. Nobody wants to sit and read huge chunks of text with no paragraphs, images, or bullet points. By breaking up large chunks of text and adding visuals, you can make your ESG report more fun to read.
- Transparency. While your ESG report undoubtedly offers the opportunity to toot your own horn, you need to be honest about your pitfalls or what you could do better. Be transparent and accurate and hold yourself accountable for what hasn’t gone so well.
- Relevancy. When it comes to an ESG report, the more detail, the better. It is important, however, not to include any unnecessary or irrelevant information. Consider what key stakeholders such as colleagues, customers, and shareholders would want to know (and should know), and decide what to include based on that.
Creating and releasing an ESG report can seriously boost your eco credentials and help to build trust with consumers and business partners alike. By taking inspiration from these ESG investing big-hitters, you’ll be on your way to being a more sustainable business in no time.
