Marc Sollberger
Performance Advisory Services
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Investors, customers and other stakeholders are increasingly considering sustainability topics in their decision-making. While financial reporting is governed by clear legal provisions and an explicit audit requirement, this is not the case for disclosures on non-financial or sustainability-related information. Even though there is no legal duty to arrange an audit of the figures communicated in these areas, there are still good reasons to get assurance from an independent third party:
1. Increase credibility and strengthen reputation with internal and external stakeholders.
2. Flag internal weaknesses in processes or controls.
3. Effectively rebut any accusations of «greenwashing».
BDO offers two types of audit opinion depending on the desired degree of assurance:
Opinion with positively worded assurance
- Reasonable assurance
- Audit evidence gathered from internal and external sources
- Evidence is obtained from all levels of the organisation
- Focus on reliability of information
- Audit may cover the entire report or specific sections
Opinion with negatively worded assurance
- Limited assurance
- Audit evidence is gathered primarily from internal sources
- Evidence is obtained mainly at group and management level
- Focus on plausibility of data
- Audit may cover the entire report or specific sections
