ESG reporting with AI

Environmental, social and governance - these are the three sustainability criteria that ESG reports focus on. There is much more behind this than just an attempt to polish up one's own image by acting responsibly: Throughout the EU, corporations are obliged to comply with certain minimum standards. In addition to energy efficiency, environmental and species protection and recycling, these also include decent working conditions and safety along the entire supply chain. Those who do not comply with the standards risk not only fines but also the loss of orders.

ESG reporting involves effort

Systematic ESG reporting is therefore essential: it saves time, does not keep employees from doing their actual work and avoids errors. At the same time, it involves all departments and business processes, ensures high data quality and guarantees compliance with all standards and deadlines. Sounds tempting - and time-consuming: implementing a completely new system, creating interfaces, clarifying processes. But it can be done without a major project. The key lies in the skillful and sensible use of artificial intelligence (AI).

Sustainability reports often still copied together with Excel

As there is no EU-wide “ESG police” to monitor the sustainability of companies, they have to prove themselves how responsibly they are acting - by means of regular reports with standardized key figures and comprehensible information. This is precisely what causes headaches for some SMEs: Where are these figures supposed to come from all of a sudden if they have never been collected before? , half of companies do not yet use special tools and automated reporting. So the key sustainability figures are compiled using existing tools - often manually in Excel files. And that is not particularly sustainable.

ESG reporting obligation: Who is affected?

The EU's CSRD Directive (Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive) came into effect in Germany in 2024 through a corresponding implementation law. As a result, previous reporting obligations (e.g. Section 289b HGB) have been revised. From 2025, all corporations that are considered “large” according to the current Section 267 HGB and fulfill two of these three criteria must submit an ESG report:

250 employees
25 million euros balance sheet total
50 million euros turnover

This affects an estimated 50,000 companies in the EU, many of which will have to prepare an ESG report for the first time.

Artificial intelligence for smart ESG reporting

As in many areas, AI is proving to be a real game changer in sustainability reporting. The technology's greatest strength lies not in the formulation of reports, but in the provision of the necessary data.

Analytical AI as a data juggler

In addition to generative AI for texts, images and videos, analytical AI has made great progress in recent years. With one key difference: the aim here is not to create content that the user likes - but to find large quantities of data with the highest precision, evaluate it neutrally and prepare it in a clear way. Analytical AI uncovers hidden correlations and creates transparency in previously unclear processes. The best example: interactive dashboards that provide important key figures, KPIs and forecasts in real time and can be used intuitively without lengthy training. Large providers such as Microsoft offer a mature technological basis for this that allows for individual solutions. Data protection is guaranteed by secure EU data centers.

How AI-based ESG reporting works

The most laborious part of conventional ESG reporting, which takes days or weeks, is done immediately by an analytical AI: compiling and standardizing information from different sources. The underlying data does not need to be available in a standardized format or prepared in advance. This is because the AI analyzes texts, databases, logs, lists, invoices, emails and much more information from all areas of the company. This means that key figures such as waste generation, energy consumption or equal pay are available without a great deal of effort - up to the minute and in high data quality.

ESG reporting with AI in detail

Those who use AI for automated reporting are among the pioneers: Only nine percent of finance departments, seven percent of HR departments and one percent of management teams already use artificial intelligence. This was surveyed by the industry association bitkom in the
Digital Office Index 2024. It is not only the speed and efficiency with which AI analyzes huge amounts of data that is astonishing. In many ways, the technology makes Excel spreadsheets look like slide rules.

Intelligent data consolidation and collection: An intelligent tool not only processes data - it consolidates information, learns from the collection of company data and web content and makes suggestions for increasing data quality.
Improved CO2 balancing: An analytical AI extracts, analyzes and categorizes environmental data from various sources - from the electricity meter in the factory to the delivery bill. This creates CO2 balances at the touch of a button instead of days of error-prone calculations.
Early risk detection: Sophisticated AI algorithms recognize patterns in data from a wide range of sources - and conspicuous deviations. Locations with high consumption or “outliers” in the supply chain become visible in good time.
Automated routine tasks: AI-based reporting relieves employees of much of the hard work in no time at all. With each run, the analytical AI gains valuable experience, which flows into the reporting processes and further increases precision.
Built-in quality assurance: Over time, the technology recognizes irregularities, incorrect entries or delays in processes. In this way, AI makes an important contribution to quality assurance.

Positive side effects of intelligent ESG reporting

AI-based ESG reporting can be implemented relatively quickly - and can have a lasting positive impact. This is because the findings of an intelligent reporting tool are not limited to key figures for environmental and compliance reports that strengthen reputation and trust. The data analyses can be used for risk management as well as for optimizing processes. They can show where cost savings can be made and which sales measures are currently successful. Real-time reporting creates the basis for data-driven decisions on many levels and can even fuel innovations for new business models and products.

Conclusion: ESG & AI - sustainably good together

Anyone who has previously regarded sustainability reports as a chore or will have to start doing so from 2025 will be surprised at what AI-supported reporting can achieve: it instantly summarizes data from the entire company into valid key figures - and provides insights that go far beyond environmental and compliance aspects. Medium-sized companies in particular can conclude that intelligent ESG reporting is simply a smart solution.

ESG AI - Data-based ESG reporting in real time

For SMEs and large companies that fulfil certain criteria, ESG reporting (in accordance with the CSRD) has been mandatory in stages since 2025. To do this, you need accurate, up-to-date, standardised key figures and verifiable information that you need to compile. Where should you get these figures from if you have never collected them before? Or have you perhaps even compiled this data manually in countless Excel files, which was very laborious, time-consuming and error-prone?

Konica Minolta has developed an ESG reporting system that provides you with all the important ESG data at the touch of a button. Optimise your ESG data processes with our ESG AI service, which provides you with all ESG data from various sources quickly, efficiently and always up-to-date. This allows you to concentrate fully on your core business tasks instead of having to painstakingly collect data from all areas of the company.

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Become “ready to report”!

We offer special workshops for companies that want to establish or expand their sustainability reporting: Together with experienced consultants, participants develop an ESG strategy in the shortest possible time and make the company fit for all further steps - including AI-supported reporting.

Whether ESG reporting, information security or process optimization: the digital transformation in SMEs has many facets. As a major technology and managed service provider, Konica Minolta advises companies in various industries on digitalization strategies and the use of advanced technologies.

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Dominik Baum

Customer Success Manager

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