Format
This course will be delivered via Zoom on Thursday 24 October 2024 from 8.30 am to 2pm. The Zoom link will be emailed to participants the day before the course is due to take place.
Who Should Attend?
Accountants (and other finance professionals) in practice and industry, across business and financial services and whether in the public or private sector, who want an updated summary of the current corporate sustainability reporting landscape. Similar sold-out online workshops were hosted by the Institute in both October 2023 and April 2024.
Course overview
The masterclass is designed to provide a high-level overview and will bring together a diverse range of speakers to provide key updates and insights on the global, European, and national sustainability requirements and principles most impacting the role of professional accountants. This will include:
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The definition of sustainability and ESG, and applying them in different organisational contexts
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The intersection of finance (including funding opportunities), regulation, governance, reporting and assurance – Insights on how these are impacted by the evolving sustainability requirements from various stakeholders, including regulators and society.
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The regulatory landscape – an overview of the key regulations, the impact on all types of organisations and the core requirements.
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Principles and Frameworks – An overview and explanation of common sustainability principles and frameworks, including the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, and applying them in an organisational context.
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The Sustainability Reporting landscape – An overview of the current sustainability reporting landscape, examples of reporting and the latest developments in context of International Sustainability Standards Board and European Sustainability Reporting Standards, the Impact of Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) and other legal developments for accountants.
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The Sustainability Assurance Landscape – An overview of the current sustainability assurance landscape, the evolving situation under CSRD and future developments impacting assurance, such as those included in the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CS3D).
Key Learning Outcomes
By the end of this course, participants will be able to:
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Interpret the terminology and summarise key sustainability requirements impacting organisations, e.g. CSRD.
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Explain the laws, regulations, standards, principles and best practice driving the corporate sustainability compliance agenda.
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Prioritise sustainability requirements and plan next steps from a governance (including risk management and compliance), reporting, and assurance perspective.
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Describe examples of sustainability compliance initiatives and approaches taken by various organisations.
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Describe recent developments in sustainability governance, reporting and assurance impacting organisations of all sizes and develop an action plan to address.
Speaker Bio
Níall Fitzgerald, FCA. Head of Ethics and Governance, Chartered Accountants Ireland - Níall brings together technical expertise, experience and insights from his role with the Institute and his roles as a non-executive director for an Irish Charity and chair of its governance and risk committee, Trustee for an occupational pension scheme, co-founder of Chapter Zero Ireland, advisory member on several global professional accountancy committees/task forces, and Institute of Banking faculty member with focus on financial service governance, risk, sustainability, culture and ethics.
Key Event Details:
Location: Zoom - Virtual Classroom
Time: 8.30am - 2pm
CPD Credit: 5.5 hour
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