Navigating the Increasing Importance of Social Reporting
Thursday, November 19, 2020
5:00PM ET - 6:00PM ET
On Thursday, November 19, 2020, NIRI NY hosted members for an engaging virtual panel discussion, “The “S” in ESG Takes a Step Forward.”
Moderated by NIRI NY President Neil Stewart, Director of Corporate Outreach at SASB, the panel featured:
- Vivian Zhou, American Express
- Michael Garland, NYC Office of the Comptroller
- Sara DeSmith, PwC
The discussion focused on the increased importance of diversity & inclusion and other”social” reporting, as well as other potential reporting changes or improvements in reporting in today’s environment. Panelists also discussed how COVID-19 has put a greater focus on social issues, such as human capital management, as companies tackle employee safety and the future of work.
Key takeaways include:
- It is common practice for companies to publicly state that “employees are our greatest asset,” but it is important to support that statement with the disclosure of workforce-related data to help investors understand how they’re managing their workforce and converting it to value for shareholders.
- Michael Garland discussed the impact the murder of George Floyd has had on corporations in 2020, and how the NYC Office of the Comptroller has called on major companies that have issued statements in support of racial equality to match their words with concrete actions by disclosing more specific employee data.
- For companies looking to establish an ESG framework, Vivian Zhou recommends forming a steering committee to help bring together senior leaders across the company who are responsible for implementing ESG initiatives. At Amex, she notes that this initiative has been successful in more efficiently gathering information across different business units and holding various teams accountable.
- Sara DeSmith discussed the increasing prevalence of integrated reporting – or the disclosure of both financial and non-financial metrics – in SEC reporting, because the financial figures just don’t always tell the whole story. She notes that finance and accounting teams will be tasked with helping to ensure that the non-financial data is collected, controlled, and reported with similar rigor to financial information.
- Panelists note that consistency of non-financial metrics that are disclosed is necessary for investors to effectively compare companies and perform accurate valuation analyses. In fact, the NYC Office of the Comptroller is advocating that the SEC require a core set of mandatory metrics that are universally disclosed by all companies across industries.
A link to the virtual panel can be found here.
We look forward to providing you with access to high-quality virtual events over the coming months, and we encourage you to stay connected with the NIRI NY chapter by following us on Twitter, LinkedIn, and checking out the latest information on our website.
This event was sponsored by Donnelley Financial Solutions, Inc.
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