Introduction to sustainability

Course overview

The revised ICAEW Sustainability Certificate equips accountants and other finance professionals with the practical knowledge and skills to integrate sustainability reporting into their organisations.

After completion of the modules, finance professionals will be able to confidently partner with sustainability experts to identify climate-related risks and incorporate performance and financial metrics into:

• risk management,
• financial planning and analysis, and
• ESG/sustainability reporting.

At the end of the first unit of the SAP you complete a case study assessment and are awarded the ICAEW Sustainability Certificate.

Modules:

1. Introduction to sustainability and ESG
2. Climate change – risks, opportunities and reporting 
3. Sustainability and ESG assessments – process, principles and the role of accountants 
4. Analysing, interpreting and applying ESG/Sustainability assessments 
5. Final case study: business/practice 

Time: 13 hours

Learning outcomes:

On completion of this unit learners will be able to:

• Describe how ESG/sustainability regulation and stakeholder demand is driving change and what this means for the future role of accountants and finance teams.
• Understand how to analyse and integrate the impacts of climate change and sustainability targets into financial planning and analysis.
• Recognise how financial statements (and management accounting) are affected by climate-related matters; including an overview of the key accounting standards where this most commonly applies.
• Explain why ESG (beyond climate) is relevant for the C-suite through exploring key drivers of uptake; common tools and frameworks; and how ESG data is used by stakeholders.
• Work with sustainability experts to establish robust data processes, controls and metrics to monitor broader ESG performance.
• Analyse, communicate and integrate ESG/sustainability assessment results into financial planning and analysis in your organisation.