DHC Named a Top Management Consultant by CR Magazine
Non-financial reporting (NFR) is now inescapable. Stakeholders expect organizations to report on their performance for environmental, social and governance topics. They also expect organizations to set targets to improve efforts in these areas, and to report on performance.
Investors, customers, current and prospective employees, regulators – these are a just a few stakeholder groups that expect NFR. Larry Fink, the CEO of Blackrock and the Vatican are two influential stakeholders who have They also have different priorities and expectations.
Specific ESG topics grow in importance, and new topics seem to arise every year. There are multiple reporting frameworks and standards. The systems and controls for NFR are still evolving, especially in comparison to those for financial reporting.
These factors create confusion, challenges and risk for organizations. The same factors create opportunities for efficiencies, effectiveness, and competitive advantage – if companies are strategic about it. This is where DHC comes in.
Asset transfers can include contract provisions involving environmental, safety, or overall compliance issues. DHC has helped draft contract provisions. All too often, transactional attorneys and negotiators create these provisions – and then move on. DHC has helped clients design and implement processes to monitor conformance with contract agreements. Where possible, DHC has helped clients prepare claims to other parties for reimbursement of costs identified or incurred post-closing that are covered contractual provisions. In many cases, these efforts have yielded benefits that were a significant multiple of consultant project costs.
DHC has helped clients pre- and post-closing in other ways:
DHC helps organizations improve efficiency and effectiveness of Non-Financial Reporting. DHC helps our clients design and improve the many elements of non-financial programs, linking environmental and social drivers to compliance, operations, business reputation, and reporting. DHC has experience in supporting financial reporting and conducting external assurance engagements, so we can link NFR to these requirements, too. Our services include those listed below.
Mr. Hileman taught on the topic at UCLA Extension in the early 2000s. He is sought after for presentations on risks and opportunities for Non-Financial Reporting. He is familiar with the leading NFR frameworks. He has followed and provided comments on revisions. This commitment and experience provide perspectives on what stakeholders expect. His operational and in-house experience provides perspectives on challenges in NFR, and how to overcome them.
DHC often acts as a “translator”, conveying ESG concepts, importance and needs to Management. He adds value by helping Environmental, Operations, second line audit functions and others adopt techniques and language used by Management and in financial reporting.
Key stakeholders see different sets of information; shouldn’t it all be the same? Maybe not – and it’s up to companies to sort through the confusion. Reporting frameworks can suggest reporting on different aspects of the same issue (human rights in supply chains, diversity & inclusion, etc.). There are also B2B reporting channels, where stakeholders can ask for more details to help them fulfill their objectives. Different customers (or customer groups) may ask for different things. There are efforts to consolidate stakeholder needs, but organizations still need to provide answers to the immediate requests. Failure to do so can pose risk to the stakeholder relationship.
