How companies can get ready without drowning in bureaucracy

ESG is often treated as yet another “EU-driven reporting requirement” that only matters to large corporations. In 2026, that view is outdated. ESG has become a system of trust between a company and its stakeholders—banks, investors, international clients, donors, insurers, and strategic partners.

The key point: ESG does not start with a 100-page PDF. It starts with a simple question:

“Can we demonstrate—through data and processes—that we manage environmental, social, and governance risks?”

If you can, you win faster approvals, cleaner negotiations, and fewer surprises in due diligence. If you can’t, you lose time, credibility, and sometimes deals.

Below are five common mistakes companies make when approaching ESG—and how to fix them.

Mistake: “ESG is voluntary, so it doesn’t apply to us”

Reality

Even if you are not directly regulated, ESG reaches you through:

• tenders and contracts with international customers;

• bank / donor requirements (questionnaires, covenants, disclosures);

• supply chain pressure, where large clients need your data to meet their own reporting obligations.

In practice, a large customer may be responsible for disclosure—but suppliers and contractors are asked to provide the inputs.

What to do

Create a minimal ESG company passport you can share quickly:

1. a one-page overview of your business and key risks

2. core policies (ethics, H&S, environment, grievance)

3. 10–15 annual metrics (energy, fuels, incidents, training, etc.)

4. a 12-month improvement plan

 

Mistake: “We can prepare an ESG report in a week”

Reality

You can produce design and narrative quickly. What takes time is the foundation:

• where data comes from and how it’s collected,

• who owns and verifies each number,

• whether methods are consistent across sites/units,

• whether figures can be evidenced (invoices, logs, HR records, H&S reports).

The “hard part” isn’t writing—it’s making the data real, comparable, and defensible.

What to do

Plan ESG as a project with three phases:

• Phase 1 (2–4 weeks): data map (what you collect, where it lives, who owns it)

• Phase 2 (4–8 weeks): collection + validation + gap list

• Phase 3 (2–4 weeks): packaging + internal approvals + publication / partner pack

 

Mistake: “ESG is a PR/marketing deliverable”

Reality

Communications matter—but ESG lives in management. It is about risk controls, policies, accountability, KPIs, and governance, not just storytelling.

In mature organizations, ESG typically sits between:

• leadership/board (priorities, accountability),

• finance/controlling (data discipline, controls),

• HR and H&S (people, safety),

• legal/compliance (ethics, anti-corruption),

• operations/engineering (energy, environmental aspects),

• communications (clarity, structure, tone—not ownership of content).

What to do

Build a simple responsibility model:

• ESG sponsor (senior leadership)

• ESG coordinator (project manager)

• topic/data owners across E, S, and G areas

• communications as the “packaging layer,” not the source of truth

 

Mistake: “One person can do it all”

Reality

One person can coordinate and compile—but cannot single-handedly:

• replace data owners,

• approve policies,

• validate health & safety or environmental performance,

• manage supplier screening and compliance processes.

ESG is cross-functional by nature; it requires internal ownership.

What to do

Create a lean ESG setup:

• 1 coordinator

• 5–8 data/topic owners across departments

• 1 senior sponsor

• optional short-term external support (methodology / verification)

 

Mistake: “ESG is only for big companies”

Reality

For SMEs, ESG often begins with a customer or bank questionnaire. The winner is not the company with the prettiest PDF, but the one that can provide:

• basic policies,

• reliable numbers,

• a clear view of risks and controls,

• an improvement plan.

What to do

Prepare a “20-question readiness pack” you can answer in 24–48 hours:

• energy and fuels; basic emissions approach if possible

• health & safety incidents and prevention

• training and HR practices

• anti-corruption / ethics policy

• grievance/incident reporting mechanism

• supplier expectations (even minimal)

 

ESG Without Bureaucracy: a 30-Day Starter Plan

Week 1

• appoint an ESG coordinator and a senior sponsor

• agree on 10–15 topics that truly matter to your business

• choose the output format: partner pack vs. public report

Week 2

• build a data map (what, where, who owns it)

• draft/refresh key policies

Week 3

• collect core metrics for the last year

• validate and align methods

Week 4

• produce a short ESG profile (2–4 pages) + 12-month action plan

• get internal approvals and publish / share with partners

 

Closing thought

In 2026, ESG is not “reporting for reporting’s sake.” It’s a trust infrastructure. Companies that start simple—data discipline, clear ownership, basic policies, and a realistic improvement plan—move faster through due diligence, funding conversations, and international partnerships.