ESG – Eroding. Sidelined. Gradually forgotten?

Anyone following the media, political debates or recent budget decisions might quickly get the impression that sustainability is becoming less of a priority for many organizations, being treated merely as a compulsory task completed as an afterthought. This is understandable, given that ESG can be complex, data-intensive and organizationally demanding.

However, this is precisely where the error of thinking lies. Reduced attention does not mean reduced risk. Energy and resource prices remain volatile, supply chain requirements continue to increase, and banks and investors are closely scrutinizing the resilience of ESG figures and plans.

Taking an uncontrolled approach to ESG poses a real risk

If ESG is considered a ‘side issue’, costs typically arise from manual data collection, inconsistent KPIs, auditing rework, reporting delays, and additional operating costs due to insufficient transparency of consumption data and levers (energy, materials, emissions).

The second, often underestimated, cost driver is wrong decisions. Prioritizing measures based on incomplete or inconsistent data, or launching them without considering causalities, results in ‘sunk costs’ – projects that must be corrected or rebuilt later.

What can be done? Not more reporting – but a controllable approach

In practice, we have identified five reliable building blocks:

A stringent ESG target vision supported by governance that clearly defines roles and responsibilities.
A fact-based assessment of the current situation: What are we already achieving in terms of CSRD/ESRS and where are the technical, methodological or data-related gaps?
A central ESG database as a single source of truth including data lineage.
Ensuring that data quality rules and internal control mechanisms are anchored.
Integration of ESG into the planning and control process so that measures can be implemented and tracked in a measurable way, rather than just presented on slides.

Our proven approach – repeatable, auditable, forward-looking

The initial situation is often similar. ESG information is scattered across different systems and formats. Responsibilities are divided up, resulting in high internal coordination efforts and low audit reliability. The turning point is usually the implementation of a central ESG data platform that connects and harmonizes both internal and external data sources, converting them into consistent KPIs. Role-specific dashboards provide visualization, making drivers, deviations and the impact of measures transparent in everyday work.

To meet tight reporting deadlines, we work alongside an interdisciplinary team from the fields of sustainability, data and IT, operating in parallel workstreams. Our pragmatic, implementation-oriented approach aims to make ESG data robust enough to be managed like financial reporting.

If you aim to go beyond CSRD compliance and truly embed ESG in corporate management:
BIG.Cube provides a comprehensive solution from start to finish by combining sustainability methodology and regulatory requirements with SAP data and analytics implementation.

ESG with BIG.Cube – Efficient. Scalable. Grounded!

Author: Leonie Ailler

ESG – Eroding. Sidelined. Gradually forgotten?