In March 2021, GRI launched the Business Leadership Forum (BLF) on Corporate Reporting as a Driver to Achieving the SDGs - a two-year program that convenes sustainability reporting practitioners, key stakeholder groups and data users together to raise the bar on corporate SDG reporting and drive action on the SDGs.  Through summary papers and masterclasses, we aim to inspire reporting practitioners and sustainability advocates to drive action towards the SDGs, by sharing the BLF’s expertise, thought leadership and newly gained insights at the cutting edge of corporate SDG reporting.

The Masterclasses are designed to share these newly gained insights with GRI’s wider network. Participants willing to join the masterclass will learn how to improve their corporate SDG reporting, including how to communicate business impact and contribution towards the SDGs. Participants will hear from BLF members and expert guest speakers about how they are advancing the SDGs through transparency and reporting.

This Masterclass | Business Strategy will be about integrating the SDGs into the business strategy and will focus on the main takeaways from the BLF as well as current corporate practices. The content will include what constitutes the integration of SDGs into business strategies; how are businesses integrating the SDGs into their core strategies, shining a spotlight on Boards/C-suite and supply chain; and effective corporate reporting on the integration of the SDGs into their business strategies.

We will present two summary papers; ‘Leading from the top: the role of the C-suite and Board in driving business action on the SDGs’ and ‘Incorporating sustainability considerations into supply chain management to drive the SDGs’. These summary papers feature insights from top executives on their roles in successfully driving their organizations towards sustainable business growth while at the same time contributing to sustainable development, as well as how businesses are engaging with their suppliers to assess their impacts on sustainable development issues.