HLB Mann Judd is marking one year since the formation of a Sustainability Steering Committee (SSC), cementing its commitment to sustainability and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) practices.

The committee, jointly led by Nicholas Guest (assurance and advisory partner, HLB Mann Judd Sydney), and Michelle Warren (financial and corporate reporting director, HLB Mann Judd Australasian Association), aims to foster an association-wide sustainability culture through the development of policies, education, and awareness, alongside meaningful initiatives, and enhance support for clients on their own sustainability journeys.

Over the past 12 months, the SSC has worked within the HLB network to:

  • Successfully complete greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions calculations covering scopes 1, 2 and 3, with scope 3 relating to all indirect emissions that occur in the activities of an organisation including business travel, employee commuting, waste disposal, and electricity
  • Form partnerships with organisations including carbon accounting platform Sumday, and sustainability consulting firm 2XE, to help guide clients through the complexities of ESG compliance and sustainable growth, and measure their GHG emissions to an audit-ready standard
  • Create a range of sustainability-related thought leadership and resources to support clients on their journey towards the adoption of climate related financial disclosure requirements
  • Commence client engagements to calculate baseline carbon emissions and advise clients on a pathway to the adoption of Australian Sustainability Reporting Standards
  • Collaborate with HLB International in the development of a sustainability assurance methodology and enabling training material aligned with ASSA 5000 General Requirements for Sustainability Engagements, to support the delivery of assurance engagements over climate related financial disclosures
  • Develop a collaborative and structured approach to undertake a network-wide ESG assessment, identifying key stakeholders, ESG-related risks and opportunities, assess ESG maturity and identify areas for action.

HLB International (HLBI) has also won the ESG/ Sustainability Initiative of the Year award as the International Accounting Forum Awards, being recognised for its ‘HLB Cares Initiative’ which sees its community of experts developing, implementing, and improving practices to allow them to deliver meaningful impact.

Mr Guest said the first year of the network-wide commitment has generated a significant impact on the business.

“In just 12 months, HLB Mann Judd has established strong foundations to formalise our commitment to sustainability, both within our own network and through the development of client focused sustainability service offerings,” he said.

We are dedicated to supporting our clients to not only meet the evolving ESG and sustainability-related regulatory requirements, but to also unlock the commercial opportunities that come from embedding a meaningful, integrated sustainability strategy that can engage stakeholders and contributes to long-term value creation.”

Ms Warren said “Our focus this year has been on raising awareness, building capability, and ensuring sustainability and ESG become part of the everyday conversation. We’re proud of the momentum and the culture shift already underway.”

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HLB Mann Judd is an Australasian association of independent advisory and accounting firms, with member firms in Australia, New Zealand and Fiji.