Food 4 Thought

G4 and IR1: Updated Comparison

An updated Comparative Table (click here) on the core requirements of the Integrated Reporting Framework (IR1 – Consultation Draft) and the G4 Sustainability Reporting Guidelines is now available, based on the final version of the G4 launched by the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) on 22 May. Using the structure of the IR1 as point of departure, the table lists the most relevant requirements of G4 – Part 1 and Part 2 – next to each core requirement of the IR1 Consultation Draft that was published by the International Integrated Reporting Council (IIRC) in April.

The purpose of the IR1 G4 Comparative Table is to support:

  1. Business managers and consultants in assessing what aspects of new G4 reporting content to consider in extracting content for the more concise IR (targeting one specific stakeholder group);
  2. Participants in the IIRC process to better define the unique content of the IR and ensure its effective incorporation of relevant sustainability reporting content based on G4;
  3. Regulators and standards developers to better assess the evolution of the reporting landscape and how the relevant financial and non-financial disclosure standards can be mutually supportive; and
  4. Interested stakeholders in understanding how the content of the IR and sustainability reporting connects.

The IR1 G4 Comparative Table shows substantial areas of overlap, some necessary and some signalling duplication where the IR may well be refined to make its unique content more explicit. A note of caution should be added: The GRI Amsterdam Conference has shown again how different stakeholders (from different disciplines and backgrounds) may use the same concepts but mean different things. Obvious examples of this are the terms “strategy”, “value” and “materiality”.

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