Key questions: How can I recognise

reputable sustainability consultancies and

certifications?

This handout is intended to help you identify reputable sustainability

consultancies and reliable certifications. These questions serve as
suggestions for your search for suitable partners:
1. To which national and international standards and frameworks does the
consultancy or certification refer?

2. Is the certification according to ISO 26.000 or 20.400? – This is not possible,

because these are management standards that are not certifiable.

3. When the reporting standards of the Global Reporting Initiative are mentioned,
what does that mean in concrete terms? – GRI Sustainability Reporting
Standards (GRI SRS)? Then the current standard is used. – GRI G4? Then an
outdated standard is used.

4. Is the provider subject to professional supervision – such as auditors or

environmental verifiers accredited by the German Accreditation Body (Deutsche
Akkreditierungsstelle, DAkkS)?

5. What is the subject of the audit? For example, will the sustainability report be
audited in whole or in part, and/or will the report be audited for legal
compliance, and/or will the processes on which the report is based be audited?
Tip: Be aware of what you want to have audited and for what purpose. Discuss
this in the engagement letter. If, for example, you apply EMAS, it may make
sense to have the annual report validated in a verification community.
Cooperative providers will not refuse to do this, which makes sense for you
from an entrepreneurial point of view and from the point of view of the
established processes. In practice, it has also been shown that the
complementary assignment, each underpinned by a clear mandate, is target-
oriented, i.e.: The environmental verifier validates the environmental
management system, the auditor the final report.
 6. Are the audit requirements and audit criteria disclosed according to which a
critical review is carried out? Does the provider refer to established audit
standards as e.g. IDW EPS 352, IDW EPS 990, IDW EPS 991 or ISAE 3000
(revised)? Is it explained in an understandable way what the audit statement
requires in terms of information quality or what the audit itself says?

7. How is sustainability understood? As a consideration of environmental, social

and governance aspects (Environmental, Social, Governance = ESG)? What is
the frame of reference (e.g. planetary boundaries, Paris Climate Agreement,
Sustainable Development Goals, human rights)? What is the underlying
materiality concept ("double materiality" in the EU Commission's Corporate
Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD))? Does long-term economic success
also play a role, as well as the integration of sustainability aspects into all
processes of the core business, the balance sheet, the management reporting?
Tip: The trend among companies subject to reporting requirements is towards
management reporting in the course of the extension of the EU reporting
requirements.

8. Is the phased implementation of the CSRD known?

From 2025, all companies that fulfil the previous criteria for issuing a non-
financial statement will have to report in accordance with the more detailed
requirements of the CSRD for the 2024 financial year, from 2026 all other,
newly included large companies, and from 2027 capital market-oriented SMEs
as well as large commercial but small and non-complex CRR credit institutions
and certain insurance companies will be subject to reporting requirements.

9. Providers of consulting services on the Sustainability Code (Deutscher

Nachhaltigkeitskodex, DNK) and the Common Good Economy
(Gemeinwohlökonomie, GWÖ): Can they make a statement on the legal
conformity of the Sustainability Code and the GWÖ Balance Sheet? Correct is:
the concrete application determines legal conformity.
Tip: The Sustainability Code can also be optionally extended to fulfil the Supply
Chain Due Diligence Act (Lieferkettensorgfaltspflichtengesetz, LkSG) and as
proof of taxonomy-compliant economic activities.

10. Can references be named? What were the successes and experiences in the
cooperation? How long is the history of consultancy work?
This can be an indication that someone is positioning themselves as a new
consultant in the subject area or that a new business field is being established.
It does not have to be detrimental, especially if the expertise is there.

11. Is a link made to (possible) legal obligations, e.g. to the possible obligation to
report on sustainability from the 2024/2025/2026 financial year (see point 8)?
Does the consultancy prepare for this? Does it provide knowledge that can be

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 directly integrated into operational processes?
Tip: This expectation can be part of your assignment.

12. Is the subject matter of the contract as well as the time of the service, the
consultants, the place of the service, the types of results and the fee clearly
defined in writing?