CSR reporting has long been more than something that’s “nice to have.” For many companies, it is also as integral a component of their communication as the preparation of financial reports. With effect from this year, the reporting obligations within the EU will also be significantly expanded, and the number of affected companies will quadruple. And this highlights an aspect that is often underestimated: the professional translation of sustainability reports. This is without doubt a “must-have.”
Well-formulated and professionally designed sustainability reports are now regarded as one of the most important business cards that a company has to offer. On the one hand. On the other hand, however, they must meet strict requirements with regard to content and form, which are now steadily expanding. The European Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive—the CSRD—is introducing significant changes to the requirements regarding sustainability reporting: companies that are obliged to submit these reports will soon also include many small and medium-sized companies in the EU that were previously exempt. However, the obligation will also apply to companies from third countries that generate relevant revenues within the Union—and the primary focus for these companies will be on meeting EU’s strict anti-greenwashing requirements. You guessed it: translations that adhere to CSRD requirements are the key to successful sustainability communication for a European target audience.
This applies specifically to capital market-oriented SMEs and third-country establishments that generate sales of EUR 150 million and greater in the EU whose subsidiaries are considered large companies or capital market-oriented SMEs for accounting purposes or whose branches generate sales in excess of EUR 40 million. The primary concern for smaller companies is the increased focus on supply chain transparency. As a result, the CSRD is also expanding the group of customers who require excellent translations of their sustainability reports.
A job for language professionals
Sustainability reports are superficially all about presenting the true, the good, and the beautiful. In reality, however, these documents must comply with clearly defined regulations. This also means they must use specific terminology. The correct use of technical terms in the respective target language of the destination country is essential to ensure accuracy as well as credibility. Conversely, vague or even incorrect translations can quickly result in a breach of the strict CSRD standards.
For instance, the CSRD will generally require more comprehensive reporting in the future based on narrowly defined benchmarks. This also includes the concept of “double materiality”: reports must document the impacts of business activities on people and the environment as well as the consequences of sustainability aspects for the company. In the future, sustainability reporting will also be subject to mandatory external audits whose scope will be gradually expanded. This calls for appropriate translations to guarantee that these requirements are also observed in other languages and to generate added value for the readers while also complying with standards.
A correct translation also includes making the result clearly understandable—to all stakeholders, regardless of their specific technical expertise. Condensing the large amounts of information and data that underpin a sustainability report into an easily digestible format without diluting or omitting important information in the process is a job best left to the professionals.
That’s because national statutory regulations must be observed in addition to CSR Directives. The translation of reports therefore requires a good knowledge of all aspects of CSR on the one hand but also a deep understanding of the jurisdiction in the countries of publication on the other. Otherwise, the threat of legal problems can very quickly arise. Professional translation providers can call on teams that bring together expertise in both fields.
Sustainability, language, and culture
Naturally, the fundamental linguistic and cultural competence of these professionals is extremely important. Only those who have a thorough grasp of this field will understand regional cultural nuances, conventions, and peculiarities and therefore be able to adapt metaphors and case studies to the cultural context of the respective audience. By doing so, they will also meet the expectations of these audiences with regard to sustainability reports. To safeguard this, it is important to ensure that the translation agency selected is ISO-certified. Among other things, this means that proofreading and quality control are guaranteed by competent experts.
The need to maximize the consistency of sustainability reporting is yet another argument in favor of a professional translation. This applies not only to the terminology used but also to the style and tonality. If readers do not perceive a report of this type as a coherent whole, it looks unprofessional and therefore lacks credibility.
More and more companies are pursuing their sustainability goals in a rigorous and credible manner. Sustainability reports are therefore also becoming important tools for setting a company apart from competitors. At the same time, the documentation of sustainability strategies and their success has been and is increasingly professional. A great deal of effort, knowledge, and dedication goes into these reports—they are far too valuable to fall victim to poor translations.
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The key to successful translations
• When selecting a translation service provider, make sure that the provider has specialist skills in the area of sustainability in addition to linguistic and cultural expertise.
• Make sure that the partner is ISO-certified.
• Check the consistency of the translation. This is where it can help to use translation memory tools that use previously translated sections to suggest translations for similar passages of text.
• Jointly compile a glossary that lists all the key sustainability terms and services as a foundation for consistent terminology.
• Schedule sufficient time: if the translation of the sustainability report is going to be truly satisfactory, the actual translation process must be followed by proofreading and checking phases. Trying to save time—and the budget—at this stage can turn out to be much more costly later on.
