Sustainability calls: the print industry answers
The printing industry is undergoing a major transformation, increasingly driven towards sustainability, which is seen as a strategic lever for its business. Ayming Italia, in collaboration with the Centro Studi Printing of Stratego Group, submitted a questionnaire to companies in the printing sector to understand their perception of sustainability issues and the urgency of adding these aspects to their business and presented the results during the Print Economic Forum 2023.
By Sara Monti, Senior Sustainability Consultant at Ayming Italia Srl SB | on PRINTLovers 100
In this article, we present the research results and some key concepts concerning the addition of sustainability factors in the related context. Attention will also be paid to the drivers that push companies towards a sustainable path, the different forms of reporting, changes in sustainability governance, and the crucial role of stakeholders and interconnectedness in the value chain.
Why embark on a sustainability journey
To analyse why companies embark on a path to sustainability, respondents were asked to state the key drivers that encouraged them on this path. The most relevant motivations that emerged are creating a positive impact, improving brand reputation, saving resources and increasing transparency towards customers and consumers. Other less critical stated drivers relate to regulatory obligations, ESG ratings, and openness to top management and employees.
Telling the story of your sustainability performance
One of the main cornerstones of a structured sustainability journey is - according to ESG experts - the so-called sustainability or non-financial reporting. The GRI (Global Reporting Initiative - the definitive international framework for sustainability reporting) defines sustainability reporting as 'the measurement, communication and accountability to both internal and external stakeholders of the organisation's performance against the goal of sustainable development'. There are currently many reporting tools that companies can adopt, such as:
- the Sustainability Report, drawn up voluntarily according to international standards such as GRI;
- the Non-Financial Declaration, which is mandatory according to the new European CSRD (Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive) from 2024 and drawn up according to the ESRS (European Sustainability Reporting Standard);
- the Integrated Report, which integrates financial and sustainability information;
- the Impact Report, compulsory for benefit companies, which recounts the common benefit objectives set by the company.
In general, the purpose of sustainability reporting is to recount a company's sustainability performance to respond to demands for transparency; it is, therefore, a communication tool towards stakeholders inside and outside the company and makes it possible to structure a process for collecting and monitoring socio-environmental data. International reporting standards, such as the Global Reporting Initiative or ESRS, are used to draw up the document. The standards establish the criteria according to which the qualitative and quantitative reporting indicators should be structured.
In the print sector, the Sustainability Report (41%), the Integrated Report (17%) and the Impact Report (15%) are the most popular reporting tools, while 17% of the respondents are not familiar with any of them. On the other hand, the Sustainability Report (38%) is drafted the most among respondents, while 39% do not draft any of these documents. According to respondents' perceptions, the most significant benefits of undertaking sustainability reporting are improved brand reputation, greater transparency, reduced risk, attracting new customers, and optimising internal processes. Finally, as anticipated, from 1 January 2024, the new European directive (CSRD) will come into force, making the Non-Financial Declaration mandatory for many more companies than those already obliged to draw it up, bringing significant innovations in many methodological aspects.
Sustainability governance
Sustainability governance is a set of bodies, rules, and processes to define, implement and monitor policies in favour of the environment and society. To structure it effectively, it is first necessary to review the composition and competencies of the Board of Directors to guide sustainability efforts, aligning purpose, strategy, and internal culture, which are essential elements for coherently producing sustainability goals. In practice, it is vital to aim for a change of mindset that can bring a different approach to decision-making. Adding sustainability to the corporate culture will be different for each organisation. Lastly, clarity of roles and responsibilities is crucial for sound ESG governance. Through its governance model, the Board of Directors should define the oversight of ESG controls, risks, indicators and data and their relevance to strategic decisions and company objectives. Of the companies surveyed, 16% claim to have a Sustainability Manager, 6% an Energy Manager, and 14% have no specific ESG figure. The remaining companies have equipped themselves with ordinary governance figures such as HR managers (19%), Quality and HSE Managers (8%), Chief Financial Officers (19%), and Chief Marketing Officers (12%).
Finally, certifications, policies and management systems are valuable tools to better structure and manage your sustainability governance. The most popular certifications among respondents are ISO 14001 and ISO 45001, while about 60% have no certification. B-Corp certification, product carbon footprint certification (ISO 14067), and industry certifications such as FSC and PEFC are marginal. In contrast, 55% of respondents have a code of ethics or code of conduct.
The importance of stakeholders
It is also essential to consider your stakeholders on the path to sustainability. A stakeholder is an 'entity or individual who can reasonably be expected to be significantly affected by the organisation's activities, products and services or whose actions can reasonably be expected to affect the organisation's ability to implement its strategies and achieve its objectives successfully' (GRI Guidelines).
In particular, the print media companies interviewed stated that the stakeholders most interested in sustainability reporting are mainly customers and consumers, i.e. that part of the value chain that puts pressure on companies to embark on a path of sustainability, as emerged in the first question of the questionnaire. On the other hand, rating agencies, investors and lenders, and local communities are interested to an average extent. In general, it is always important to identify your stakeholders, map their interests, and involve them in targeted and specific activities such as workshops, questionnaires, events and interviews, both for transparency issues and to better understand the direction of your sustainable business path.
Value chain interconnection and awareness-raising
Lastly, it is crucial to consider the entire value chain in which the company is embedded. Indeed, each company is responsible for itself and the actors with whom it cooperates and interfaces, even indirectly.
Various sustainability factors, such as generating a positive impact, regulation, reputation, transparency and market positioning, press upon the value chain. These elements push the actors in the different value chains to act towards sustainability and, in turn, to raise other stakeholders' awareness. In this sense, suppliers and customers can increase awareness of the company by, for example, making demands for transparency. On the other hand, the company can, in turn, raise awareness among its employees and board and also be sensitised by consumers, albeit indirectly, in the case of B2B.
The internal and external awareness-raising tools most present among the surveyed companies are management systems and environmental certifications, the code of ethics, responsible marketing and product labelling. Tools such as a code of conduct for suppliers, management systems and social certifications are present to an average extent. On the other hand, some companies still need to take action to involve and raise awareness of their value chain.
The focus on and awareness of the value chain will be even more critical when the CSDD (Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive), approved in December 2023, comes into force shortly and will require companies to wisely manage social and environmental impacts along the entire supply chain.
In conclusion, adding sustainability factors in the printing industry is essential to address today's global challenges. Key drivers, such as creating a positive impact and improving brand reputation, are driving companies towards more sustainable practices. However, sustainability is a multiphase journey involving drivers, reporting, governance, certifications, stakeholders and the entire value chain. The industry can only drive change towards a more sustainable future with a holistic approach.
Ayming is a multinational company specialising in Business Performance Consulting present in 13 countries with a multidisciplinary team. The Group makes its expertise in Facilitated Finance, facilitation of access to tenders and contributions, Taxation and Compliance and ESG and Sustainability consulting available to its clients, with whom it establishes an ongoing collaboration.
09/02/2024
