Sustainability reporting will be, or is largely already, equated with financial reporting. Even if it’s not in their core strategy, companies will have to start acting sustainably and showing it to lawmakers, stakeholders, and customers alike. The problem a lot of companies have is showing the hard evidence that they are, in fact, acting in a responsible and sustainable way.
The data needed for analyzing and reporting can be scattered, inaccurate or impossible to find. When data is discovered, in many cases it must be manually consolidated for analysis and reporting. This can take a lot of time and effort and cost a lot of money.
There’s a better solution for most of the companies out there. In this article, we will focus on how companies using NetSuite can calculate and report their sustainability figures straight from NetSuite data.
But first, why would you calculate your carbon footprint?
In today's world, environmental concerns are at an all-time high, and companies are under increasing pressure to reduce their carbon footprint. Calculating the carbon footprint of a company is essential to understand the impact of its operations on the environment. It helps to identify areas where the company can reduce its carbon emissions and implement sustainable practices.
Moreover, consumers are becoming more environmentally conscious and are more likely to support companies that take steps to reduce their carbon footprint. Therefore, calculating and reducing the carbon footprint is not only essential for the environment but also for the long-term success of the company.
Greenstep’s solution for NetSuite companies
Sustainability-oriented companies currently collect their ESG data manually from many sources. It is time and resource consuming. Data may not be in the connect format and there are gaps or overlaps between systems.
Existing sustainability regulation also requires more detailed reporting than before. For example, the carbon footprint of companies.
Greenstep is well-versed in sustainability related laws and regulations. With our automated NetSuite CO2-calculation robot we’re setting emission calculations to a whole new level.
How does this happen in practice?
The calculation of the carbon footprint is based on direct emissions of the company's own operations, such as energy consumption, vehicle fuel consumption, and emissions from the manufacturing process, as well as indirect emissions generated in the value chain.
The data needed for the company's carbon footprint is usually easier to collect from the company's accounting or ERP-systems. Information on emissions generated in the value chain, such as emissions generated in the manufacturing process of purchased raw materials, is usually difficult to obtain or not measured by the manufacturer at all. In this case, the calculation must rely on secondary data and the best estimate.
After collecting the emission data, it is also necessary to determine correct emission factors for data, i.e. how much emissions have been caused by the production of purchased electricity by the energy producer or how much emissions are caused by air travel made as a business travel. Some emission data is easy to get from the service provider like from transport services. These are added to the company's carbon footprint as such.
The calculation of the carbon footprint is done by multiplying the data with a suitable emission factor, which gives the number of emissions caused. The company's total carbon footprint is calculated by summing up all the emission data. However, it is useful to categorize and specify the emissions by scope and categories to see the differences between direct and indirect emissions.
Here’s to a Greener future!
Companies are expected to act sustainably in the future. Many purchase decisions will be made based on how sustainable a company is, which means that they need to not just act responsibly but to tell about their actions realistically and openly.
We are helping our customers to do just that.
Published 24.10.2023