External Assurance for Sustainability Reporting: A Comprehensive Guide
This course provides a comprehensive introduction to assurance in sustainability reporting, showing how it enhances both disclosure quality and internal processes. Learn the fundamentals of sustainability assurance, how it differs from financial auditing, and how to choose the right third-party provider for your organization.
Course Content
Introduction
Part 1: The what and why of external sustainability reporting assurance
Part 2: Preparing your organization for external assurance
Part 3: Understanding the assurance process
Part 4: Finding the right assurance provider
Final knowledge check
Wrap-up
Who is this course designed for?
This course is aimed at sustainability management and reporting professionals who have had little experience of any third-party assurance, and who will have to work with external auditors assuring their sustainability reporting.
What will you achieve?
When you have completed this course, you will be able to:
Describe the benefits, challenges and the process of third-party sustainability reporting assurance, as well as the related costs and timing
State the different standards used for sustainability assurance, the differences between them, and the organizations that use them
Explain key terms related to assurance in order to improve the communication between assurance and sustainability professionals within your organization during the assurance process
Describe the elements of a good reporting system and use these to inform your preparation for the external assurance process
Explain the key aspects to consider when appointing an external assurance provider
Match your organization's specific assurance needs with the expertise and capabilities of potential assurance providers
Pre-requisites
There are no pre-requisites for this course.