• Over two-thirds of companies reporting under CSRD or ISSB frameworks say sustainability disclosures now inform business strategy, risk management, and supply chain decisions.
• Despite EU delays and regulatory recalibration, 40% of firms will continue reporting on the original timeline, driven by investor and customer expectations.
• Use of AI in reporting nearly tripled in 2025, with firms piloting tools for data validation, disclosure drafting, and risk identification.

Regulatory Uncertainty Meets Investor Demands

2025 is proving to be a pivotal year for corporate sustainability disclosures. Thousands of companies have filed reports under the European Union’s Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), while others prepare for emerging requirements under the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) framework. At the same time, regulatory signals remain uneven.

The EU has scaled back CSRD’s scope and postponed some obligations through its “stop the clock” directive, while the US Securities and Exchange Commission continues to delay finalising climate disclosure rules. Yet PwC’s Global Sustainability Reporting Survey 2025 shows that despite shifting timetables, investor and market pressure is accelerating corporate action.

Of the 496 companies surveyed, 40% of those planning CSRD reporting say they will delay by two years, but an equal share intend to proceed on the original schedule, even if no longer mandated. Many are turning instead to ISSB standards or the Global Reporting Initiative to meet disclosure expectations.

Stakeholder Pressure Drives Momentum

The decision to continue reporting rests on more than regulatory compliance. PwC’s survey highlights that investors, customers, and local authorities are pressing for detailed insights into sustainability risks and opportunities. This is not abstract pressure: in PwC’s separate Global Investor Survey, over 70% of investors said sustainability must be integrated into corporate strategy, with nearly two-thirds calling for deeper carbon reductions.

Companies themselves are finding value in the process. More than two-thirds of those already reporting under CSRD or ISSB said the exercise delivered moderate to significant benefits beyond compliance. The insights are shaping supply chain restructuring, workforce planning, risk management, and even marketing.

Leadership Engagement and Resources Expand

For many firms, the reporting process has become an executive-level priority. Over 60% of respondents said investment of resources and senior leadership time increased in the past year. Only 5% reported a decline.

Companies that reported the highest value outcomes were far more likely to have dedicated substantial leadership attention. Among this group, 40% increased senior executive involvement in 2025, compared with just 16% across all respondents.

PwC notes that effective reporting is not achieved by sustainability teams alone. The survey found companies benefitting from broad cross-functional collaboration — particularly HR involvement under CSRD, given workforce equity and resilience disclosures. Early engagement with auditors also proved critical; more than a third of reporters said assurance would have been smoother with earlier planning.

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Technology and AI Enter the Reporting Mainstream

Technology adoption is now central to managing complex, repeatable reporting. More than half of surveyed firms already use centralised data platforms, carbon accounting tools, and disclosure management systems.

The sharpest shift, however, came with artificial intelligence. Use of AI in sustainability reporting nearly tripled to 28% this year, from 11% in 2024. Companies are experimenting with AI for drafting disclosures, integrating data across systems, and identifying material risks. Most remain at pilot stage, but PwC suggests the sector could leapfrog legacy systems by deploying agent-based AI networks around centralised data hubs.

Global Companies Face Multi-Jurisdictional Complexity

Multinationals face the most intricate compliance challenges. Many operate subsidiaries subject simultaneously to EU CSRD, ISSB adoption in Asia or Latin America, and state-level requirements in the US. Sector-specific rules in finance and energy compound the complexity.

To manage overlapping obligations, firms are paying close attention to interoperability between frameworks. PwC emphasises the need for consistent data foundations that can feed multiple regulatory regimes while avoiding duplication.

Lessons for the Next Phase

The survey highlights a divergence between firms extracting value and those seeing reporting purely as compliance. Companies that integrate sustainability data into corporate decision-making — from capital allocation to supply chain redesign — report far greater strategic benefit. Conversely, those limiting reporting to disclosure alone saw little business impact.

As one respondent noted, “Publishing that first CSRD report may have felt like an all-hands project, but the challenge is building systems to make it repeatable.” PwC concludes that leadership commitment, cross-functional integration, and investment in technology remain the defining success factors.

Global Implications

The findings arrive at a time when sustainability reporting is still in flux but no longer optional. Regulatory recalibrations have slowed statutory mandates, yet stakeholder expectations continue to grow. More than half of companies surveyed reported rising internal and external pressure to disclose, with fewer than 10% saying it had eased.

The trajectory mirrors the decades-long evolution of financial reporting. Sustainability disclosures, PwC suggests, will become business as usual, embedded into governance and strategy. For executives, the pressing question is less about whether to report, and more about how to build resilient systems that turn data into decisions.

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