According to the study “ESG Strategy and Reporting – Status and Implementation in German SMEs” by IMI and PwC Germany, 76 percent of companies in Germany do not feel prepared to achieve their ESG goals and meet the legal requirements.
One major hurdle is, unsurprisingly, the slow pace of digitalization in SMEs. 75% of companies still use spreadsheets to record and process ESG-relevant data. Given the scope of the new Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), this can quickly lead to excessive demands and a lack of transparency.
In this article, we would like to show you why you should not rely on tables for sustainability management and which path you can take instead.
1. excel is prone to human error
Excel spreadsheets are prone to human error, which can affect data quality and reduce the informative value of your sustainability reports. For example, if you enter a formula incorrectly in an Excel spreadsheet, this can lead to incorrect results being output. An incorrect number in a cell can also distort the overall value of your table and therefore ultimately your sustainability report.
2. excel can slow down your reporting
The larger your Excel spreadsheets become, the slower your reporting will be. For example, if you have several hundred thousand records in Excel, this can affect Excel’s performance and slow down your reporting. This can also cause Excel to crash or freeze, which can lead to data loss and work interruptions.
3 Excel is not suitable for team collaboration
Excel is not suitable for collaboration. If several people are working on an Excel spreadsheet, this can lead to conflicts, as Excel does not offer a way to resolve conflicts between users. This can lead to data being lost or misinterpreted.
4. excel is not suitable for the cloud
Excel is not optimally suited for use in the cloud. For example, if you try to save an Excel spreadsheet in the cloud, various problems can occur. The size of the Excel spreadsheet can lead to a slow upload, and there may also be difficulties synchronizing the data between different devices.
How can you remove Excel from your sustainability management?
To remove Excel from sustainability management, you can switch to an ESG software solution. This has numerous advantages over using Excel.
With ESG software, you can structure your sustainability data more clearly and manage it better. In addition, intelligent processes save you time and stress, as administrative tasks are taken off your hands and all data is stored in one place.
In addition, consistent optimization potentials can be identified through data-supported findings and targeted strategies can be developed, e.g. to reduce CO2 emissions.
ESG software not only helps with the fulfillment of disclosure obligations, but also makes the progress of set targets and guidelines to be fulfilled measurable. You also have the option of assigning tasks to each other as a team and thus achieving structured sustainability management.
ESG software thus provides an analytical foundation for understanding the strengths and weaknesses of companies’ sustainability management. Data collection is rationalized or automated, which simplifies reporting. By switching to ESG software, you can therefore remove Excel from your sustainability consulting and save yourself a lot of time.
Conclusion: Save time with ESG software
Does the tried and tested last the longest? Excel is still used by many companies for sustainability reporting and analyses.
However, the challenges for sustainability managers are obvious. Susceptibility to human error, difficulties in processing large amounts of data and the lack of collaboration options and cloud functions can impair the effectiveness and informative value of sustainability reports.
One solution to this problem is to switch to an ESG software solution. This offers numerous advantages over Excel, such as the clearer structuring and management of customer data, data-based insights for identifying optimization potential and the streamlining or automation of data collection. It also facilitates reporting and makes it possible to measure progress in terms of targets set and guidelines to be met.
In view of the scope of the new CSRD, it is worth leaving the tried and tested behind and looking at an ESG software solution.
Check now whether a changeover makes sense for your own company. Our experts will be happy to guide you through our ESG software solution without obligation and explain how Code Gaia can effectively help with sustainability management.
