Extra-financial data: the governance asset you can no longer ignore
The year 2025 has imposed on managers of medium-sized companies (ETI) a climate of uncertainty marked by instability and pressure on margins. In this context, sustainability is often seen as a cost center or a secondary option, a simple “vitamin” for the long term. However, as Sabine Lochmann pointed out in her column for Les Echos on 23 January last year, blindness to this data is a major strategic risk.
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The data archipelago: the risk of the invisible
While financial data benefits from the rigor of ERP systems, extra-financial data is too often scattered in an “archipelago” of Excel files and ad hoc surveys.
- This lack of structure prevents risk monitoring as rigorous as cash flow or working capital requirements (WFR).
- Without a single reference system, managers manage part of their strategy behind the scenes.
Transforming CSRD into a performance driver
Compliance with the directive CSRD should not be seen as a simple reporting obligation. It represents an opportunity to switch to data management:
- A governance asset : By structuring this information, it becomes a decision-making tool for investments, purchases or talent management.
- A comparative advantage : Reporting tools make it possible to limit reputational risks and to precisely meet the requirements of investors.
Towards a unified “truth system”
To truly integrate sustainability into the heart of the strategy, Sabine Lochmann recommends a structuring approach:
- Mapping flows : Identify data sources (climate, HR, ethics, cybersecurity, etc.).
- Empowering : Designate, within management, the guarantor of the consistency of this information.
- Unifying architecture : Migrate to a system capable of feeding both regulatory reports and operational arbitrations.
“If our financial ERP went down, we would all be worried. So why wouldn't it be the same in extra-financial matters? ” - Sabine Lochmann.
To go further:
- Read the full article on Les Echos.fr.
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