Developing sustainability reporting - Case Cargotec - Aaltodoc

Niskala emphasised that sustainability reporting should be based on materiality analysis, in
which two key elements, impacts on business and stakeholders’ expectations are looked at.
Regarding business impacts now and in the future, he explained that the key factors to be
analysed are cash flows, risks and possibilities. For analysis of stakeholders’ expectations,
several possibilities exist: internal analysis, questionnaire to stakeholders, stakeholder panel or
regular stakeholder forum. In Niskala’s experience, companies usually use a questionnaire to
stakeholders and an internal workshop about business impacts. He mentioned that it would be
useful to invite also critical stakeholders in the discussion.
According to Niskala, annual report with sustainability issues incorporated in it and a more
detailed stand-alone sustainability report are a good approach to reporting. In Niskala’s view,
GRI reporting does suit Cargotec even though it is focused on company-specific inputs and
outputs. For considering different stakeholders’ information needs, Niskala suggested that
Cargotec could use different reporting channels for different stakeholder groups. For example
“financial statement type of reporting in the annual report can serve owners and investors, while
customers could be better reached through a customer magazine or other product-focused
communication channel.” Niskala concluded that Cargotec has to analyse its stakeholders and
how they could be reached; then the message should be tailored according to each stakeholder
group’s needs.
Regarding external assurance of sustainability reporting, Niskala thinks that assurance brings
structure to reporting and to developing internal processes. Moreover, he believes that assurance
adds credibility – “at least in the eyes of analysts and those customers who themselves assure
their sustainability reporting.” However, the problem in Niskala’s view is that assurance is not
regulated. In the future, he expects sustainability reporting and external assurance of it to become
mandatory. Until that, “each company must analyse the benefits of assurance for itself.”
When asked about what Cargotec should focus on in the reporting, Niskala suggested that
Cargotec needs to cover both the impacts of its own operations and the products’ life cycle
impacts. He proposed Cargotec to present a product life cycle analysis together with the
possibilities that the company has for influencing the different sustainability impacts during each
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