Corporate Reporting Dialogue launched, responding to calls for alignment in corporate reporting
17 June 2014, Amsterdam – The Corporate Reporting Dialogue (CRD), introduced by the International Integrated Reporting Council (IIRC), brings together organisations that have significant international influence on the corporate reporting landscape. By working together towards a common goal, participants aim to respond to market calls for better alignment and reduced burden in corporate reporting.
The CRD was officially launched at the ICGN (International Corporate Governance Network) Annual Conference in Amsterdam on 17 June 2014. Erik Breen, Incoming Chairman of the ICGN stated, “The ICGN is proud to host the launch of the CRD as a welcome platform to coordinate and align the developments in corporate reporting. Under the umbrella of the IIRC, we are comfortable that the CRD will progress while keeping institutional investors in mind as the main user group of corporate reporting.”
Claudia Kruse, Chair of the ICGN’s Integrated Business Reporting Committee and Managing Director of Governance and Sustainability at APG said, “ICGN welcomes the CRD bringing together those that guide companies’ financial and sustainability reporting. This will help create greater clarity for companies and investors alike and stimulate genuine Integrated Reporting.”
The organisations participating in the CRD are all involved with the issuing of international standards and frameworks. They share a common interest in Integrated Reporting and in improving the quality and consistency of global corporate reporting to provide increased certainty for businesses and investors alike. The CRD aims to promote greater coherence, consistency and comparability between corporate reporting frameworks, standards and related requirements, leading to improved efficiency and effectiveness.
Mrs Huguette Labelle, Chair of Transparency International and an IIRC Council member, has accepted the request from the participating organisations to chair the CRD and officially takes on her role today. She stated, “The corporate reporting landscape is changing. For too long, reporting has been fragmented and disconnected from the strategic drivers of value. In an interconnected world, isolated change is insufficient to reflect the complexities of modern business and investment practice. The CRD is a collaboration that will promote greater cohesion and efficiency, rebalancing reporting in favour of the reader, helping to re-establish the connection between a business and its principal stakeholders. It is a privilege to be chairing this initiative.”
The CRD will develop practical ways to bring alignment to the direction, content and ongoing development of reporting frameworks, standards and related requirements. Participants will share information, express a common voice on areas of mutual interest, and as the initiative progresses, will reach out to the broader corporate reporting landscape. The initial deliverable will be to develop a ‘Corporate Reporting Landscape’ highlighting the connectivity of the various reporting frameworks and standards and their relevance to Integrated Reporting.
Paul Druckman, IIRC CEO stated, “The purpose of the CRD is to strengthen cooperation, coordination and alignment between key organisations with Integrated Reporting as the umbrella. The need for this is continuously articulated in my discussions with companies, investors, regulators and other stakeholders across the world.
“At the creation of the IIRC we set out to be a catalyst for an evolution in corporate reporting – the formation of the CRD is at the heart of this, and is a significant step towards achieving our goal.”
NOTES TO EDITORS
Corporate Reporting Dialogue participants:
CDP
Climate Disclosure Standards Board (CDSB)
Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB)
Global Reporting Initiative (GRI)
International Accounting Standards Board (IASB)
International Integrated Reporting Council (IIRC)
International Public Sector Accounting Standards Board (IPSASB)
International Organization for Standardization (ISO)
Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB)
The IIRC
The International Integrated Reporting Council (IIRC) is a global coalition of regulators, investors, companies, standard setters, the accounting profession and NGOs. Together, this coalition shares the view that communication about businesses’ value creation should be the next step in the evolution of corporate reporting.