Which FTSE 100 company is the best at reporting sustainability?

Congratulations to BT Group for ranking first in this year’s Sustainability Reporting Performance of the FTSE 100 research. Marks and Spencer Group (M&S) scored a very close second, missing the top spot by one percentage point. Both of these companies really pave the way in terms of climate change best practice with holistic and extensive approaches to their sustainability strategies. Unilever ranked third thanks to its innovative approach to managing sustainability performance and engagement.

What did these companies do well that made them the top three performers?

BT Group scored top marks in three out of the five scoring sections – measurement, reporting and verification, strategy and engagement. BT has a continuously evolving approach to carbon and sustainability management meaning that they are true leaders of the pack, pushing the boundaries in terms of sustainability leadership. That has seen them undertake work on the circular economy, meet the company’s science based target goal ahead of time and purchase 95% of electricity from renewable sources.

M&S scored top marks in reduction and engagement. The company is a consistent leader in meaningful reductions in both its emissions footprint and its impacts. The M&S ‘Plan A’ strategy is a holistic approach to sustainability management, with a scope beyond just carbon emissions. Whilst such an all-encompassing strategy can be difficult to implement, M&S has shown that embedding sustainability into the core of the business will drive innovation and produce real results.

Unilever excelled at strategy and in the newest scoring section, innovation, demonstrates an admirable commitment to long term sustainability leadership. The company’s ‘Sustainable Living Plan’, commits them to RE100 (100% renewable energy) and well as rewarding progress on sustainable business through the remuneration packages of a growing number of managers, including the CEO and several members of the Unilever Leadership Executive.

There were other scoring section leaders including Coca-Cola HBC and Mondi for measurement, verification and reporting, and Kingfisher for engagement.

We hope that other companies beyond the FTSE 100 can learn from the best practice examples and see the value to both their bottom line and to the planet of implementing a robust sustainability strategy and reporting it to their stakeholders.

The Sustainability Reporting Performance of the FTSE 100 is available here

If you’d like to rank your company using the FTSE 100 report methodology get in touch.