A new standard on corporate responsibility and transparency can improve corporate governance standards according to N R Krishnakumar, Director of Operations, DNV India and Middle East.
Recent corporate events in India have strengthened the call for more integrity, enhanced responsibility and greater transparency from businesses. Increasingly, companies are expected to be accountable to a range of stakeholders; not just to investors but also to customers, employees, and local communities. Corporate sustainability reporting or corporate responsibility reporting is one of the ways that companies are disclosing their performance on the triple bottom line in a transparent manner. Reporting organisations and stakeholders alike have sought standards to assure the quality, comparability and usefulness of these disclosures. Sustainability assurance provides a comprehensive way of holding an organisation to account for its management, performance and reporting on sustainability issues.
The 2008 edition of the AA1000 standard marks a major step forward for sustainability assurance. AccounAbility launched the AA1000 Assurance Standard (2008) and AA1000 Accountability Principles Standard (2008) in London on Oct 24, 2008. Det Norske Veritas (DNV) - in its role as an assurance partner adopting AA1000AS for its engagement of sustainability assurance services - is organising this workshop to bring out the highlights and features of these standards for Indian corporates.
N. R. Krishnakumar, Director of Operations, DNV India and Middle East, believes, “The release of this standard and its adoption goes a long way in establishing confidence through disclosure principles that are clear. The recent events in Indian Corporate history have cast a doubt. I am glad to note the high response we have received for this launch event clearly shows that most Indian companies are forward looking and wanting to work in an ethical manner”.
“The AA1000 AccountAbility Principles are to be used up by organisations who want to implement sustainability management systems. They can be used in different contexts including by assurance providers as criteria for robust sustainability assurance. The AA1000 Assurance Standard provides a best practice approach to sustainability report assurance which helps improve the external credibility of sustainability reporting and at the same time adds significant value internally to the reporting organisation,” says Daniel Waistell, Standards and Related Services Manager at AccountAbility, United Kingdom.
AA1000 AccountAbility Principles Standard (AA1000APS) 2008
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The AccountAbility Principles provide organisations with an internationally accepted set of principles to frame and structure the way in which they understand, govern, administer, implement, evaluate and communicate their accountability. The AA1000 AccountAbility Principles are primarily intended for use by organisations developing an accountable and strategic approach to sustainability. They will help such an organisation understand, manage and improve its sustainability performance.
AA1000 Assurance Standard (AA1000AS) 2008
The standard provides the requirements for conducting independent assurance on the nature and extent of an organisation’s understanding of and response to its non-financial, sustainability issues and on the quality of its publicly disclosed information on its sustainability performance. As reporting moves away from a purely financial focus to a more holistic view of corporate risk, opportunity and impact on our economies and societies, this standard contributes to the reform of corporate reporting and assurance.
About DNV:
DNV (www.dnv.com) is an international foundation, established in 1864 and headquartered in Oslo, Norway, with the primary objective of safeguarding life, property and the environment. Our vision is to create global impact for a safe and sustainable future. The focus of DNV is to help our customers manage the risks that they encounter now and also in future.
We provide global support through our extensive network of 300 offices in over 100 countries worldwide. In addition, with around 7600 technically competent staff, we are able to quickly deploy skilled personnel wherever and whenever a customer needs our help. DNV has extensive local presence in India, with 13 offices catering to more than 8000 customers in India.
About AccountAbility:
AccountAbility (www.accountability21.net) is a global non-profit network with representatives in London, Washington, Beijing, Geneva, Sao Paulo and San Francisco, established in 1995 to promote accountability innovations that advance sustainable development. AccountAbility works with business, government and civil society organisations to advance responsible business practices and the governance of collaborations between public and private institutions.