WELLINGTON, Nov. 4 (Xinhua) -- Two-thirds of New Zealand's CFOs are on the journey of their organization's sustainability transition but there is an opportunity for greater and faster action, according to a latest survey.
Deloitte, the Sustainable Business Council and the Center for Sustainable Finance jointly released the findings of the 2021 CFO Sustainability Snapshot Survey Thursday.
"We have seen that most organizations and CFOs have recognized the importance of taking sustainability action and have begun the journey. However, it is vital that CFOs continue to broaden their impact in this area to accelerate their organization's sustainability transition, at what is a critical tipping point for New Zealand," said Andrew Boivin, Deloitte New Zealand Climate Leader.
While many CFOs consider sustainability to be a core part of their role or hold oversight of this business area, 37 percent of those surveyed do not. This presents a significant opportunity for those CFOs to embrace sustainability and actively incorporate it into their role custodians of strategy, risk management, performance and value creation.
"The survey reflects that business leaders have a strong value lens when it comes to prioritizing sustainability. Most of the CFOs surveyed have already integrated sustainability within their organizational strategy and structure because it's the right thing to do, and they can see the competitive and reputational advantages that go with it. As a result, most have already taken action on the low-hanging fruit and are becoming increasingly ambitious in their approach and outlook," said Mike Burrell, Executive Director of the Sustainable Business Council.
The survey also indicated that resourcing and capability were key barriers for organizations to progress sustainability action, reflecting that the sustainability transition requires new ways of thinking, new skillsets, and new investments.
"Some CFOs lack experience with initiating some of the more technical sustainability aspects such as internal carbon pricing or climate-related external reporting. We want to help them navigate these areas as emissions reduction targets and climate-related disclosures become more common, and more important. We know there's still a way to go, but there's no doubt sustainability is increasingly a priority for businesses in their strategic planning, which can only be good for New Zealand," said Burrell.
"While not covered explicitly, we also expect COVID-19 will have an impact on some businesses sustainability plans, particularly where they are dealing with major disruptions or can't find the skills they need in NZ," said Boivin. Enditem
