ESG: A new era in 
practice opportunities
 Insights from the AICPA and CPA.com ESG Symposium
2023

© 2023 CPA.com. All rights reserved
ESG: A new era in practice opportunities | 1
3	
Introduction 
4	
An advocacy role 
5	
A turning point in reporting regulation
7	
The value in CPA assurance
9 
Quantifying the value in finance
10	
8 steps to building an ESG service line
13	
Solving the matrix
Inside

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ESG: A new era in practice opportunities | 2

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ESG: A new era in practice opportunities | 3
Introduction 
While environmental, social and governance (ESG) 
issues have increasingly been added to organizational 
agendas over the past several years, new and emerging 
reporting mandates and continued pressure from 
stakeholders are making ESG a top priority. At this year’s 
AICPA and CPA.com ESG Symposium—the second 
annual gathering of more than 60 representatives from 
companies, firms, standard setters, regulators and 
technology providers in the ESG ecosystem—much 
of the discussion focused on the value that CPAs can 
deliver in this space. “Rising market demand for ESG 
services is providing significant opportunities for the 
accounting profession,” said Erik Asgeirsson, president 
and CEO, CPA.com. 
Purpose-built ESG business services—
consulting, implementation, engineering 
and IT services that are chiefly designed  
to drive sustainability-related outcomes—
are expected to grow from nearly  
$38 billion in 2023 to almost $65 billion 
in 2027, according to International Data 
Corporation, which called it “one of  
the fastest growing spaces in the  
business world.”
Three of the top 100 firms below the Big Four in 
attendance estimated that ESG services would be  
at-least a $100 million service line.There’s reason to 
believe that opportunities in the ESG services arena 
could have a proportionate impact on smaller firms, as 
well. This will happen because these small business 
clients are in supply chains to larger companies 
that must comply with the regulations. They may 
be expected to meet certain ESG requirements and 
report certain metrics and progress to remain in the 
supply chain of these larger companies. Since smaller 
businesses don’t have the internal resources necessary 
to meet their larger business partners’ expectations, 
they may look to their trusted advisors for help.
And while climate change can be a controversial topic 
for some, it’s undeniable that pending legislation and the 
market environment will have an impact on businesses 
that cannot be ignored. The accounting profession 
is perfectly positioned to provide the measurement, 
reporting and assurance that will enable good decision 
making, noted Barry Melancon, CPA, CGMA, AICPA & 
CIMA president & CEO.  
Firms will face hurdles within this space. An intricate 
set of drivers—stakeholders’ expectations as well 
as national, regional and global regulations and 
legislation—have created complexity. Uncertainty is 
expected to persist in this complex ecosystem, and it 
may often be influenced by factors that the profession 
can’t control, according to Melancon. Useful and 
effective ESG reporting will depend on commonly 
accepted standards, which are beginning to emerge. 
“CPAs have the opportunity to offer data-driven 
solutions,” he said. 
The portion of companies globally that report having a long way 
to go to be ready for ESG assurance to meet new regulatory 
requirements, according to a KPMG survey. 
75%

ESG: A new era in practice opportunities | 4
An advocacy role 
The AICPA has long called for business reporting that 
goes beyond financial issues alone, Melancon noted, 
and a global answer makes the best sense. That’s why 
the profession took on an important advocacy role 
in the development of the International Sustainability 
Standards Board (ISSB), which is supported by the  
IFRS Foundation. The ISSB has issued the first 
two global standards related to sustainability 
reporting. The intent was to create a new system of 
reporting with as much commonality of application 
as possible that could be used around the world. 
Stakeholders believe the board has achieved that 
goal. Calling them “a major step towards consistent, 
comparable and reliable sustainability information,”  
the International Organization of Securities 
Commissions (IOSCO), an association of organizations 
that regulate the world’s securities and futures markets, 
endorsed the ISSB standards, a significant affirmation 
of their value. IOSCO went on to call on its 130 member 
jurisdictions, which regulate more than 95% of the 
world’s financial markets, “to consider ways in which 
they might adopt, apply or otherwise be informed by  
the ISSB standards.” 
For the AICPA, the overarching goal of all these efforts 
is to help position firms as leaders in this space, said 
Susan Coffey, CPA, CGMA, CEO—Public Accounting, 
AICPA & CIMA. “People turn to us because of our 
expertise and knowledge,” she said. 
“The accounting profession is 
perfectly positioned to provide 
the measurement, reporting and 
assurance that will enable good 
decision making.”  
– Barry Melancon, CPA, CGMA, AICPA & CIMA president & CEO

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ESG: A new era in practice opportunities | 5
A turning point in reporting regulation 
Regulators are laying down the law when it comes 
to ESG. For many years, companies that disclosed 
sustainability information have been able to follow any 
one or more of a wide variety of existing frameworks 
and, in the absence of mandates, they have been able 
to follow some or all guidance in those frameworks. 
That can hinder comparability and consistency and 
raise questions about reliability. However, firms and 
their clients should be aware of a range of recent and 
pending developments that are changing the game 
when it comes to sustainability regulation and reporting. 
In addition to the new global ISSB reporting standards 
mentioned in the introduction, there are several other 
developments to watch. 
California climate-change reporting laws. Two new laws 
are among the latest and most significant actions yet 
taken by regulators or legislators, setting a new mandate 
on reporting a company’s climate footprint. One law will 
require companies with more than $1 billion in annual 
revenues to publicly disclose their scope 1, 2 and 3 
greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Companies will also 
have to gain third-party assurance on their reporting. 
Another requires companies with more than $500 million 
in annual revenues to submit annual reports on climate-
related risks and how they are mitigating them. 
The laws are poised to have an impact well beyond 
the state’s borders. Among other things, they apply 
to companies headquartered both within and outside 
California that do business in the state. Since 
California’s economy would rank as one of the largest 
in the world if it were a country, the size of its market 
would scope in around 10,000 companies. In addition, 
while proposals by the U.S. Securities and Exchange 
Commission (SEC—see below) would apply only to 
publicly traded registrants, the California laws impact 
private businesses as well. Smaller companies that 
are not directly subject to the requirements could still 
be affected. As part of a larger business’ value chain, 
they may be expected to provide their own emissions 
data to their larger clients or customers (see the box 
on “Meeting stakeholder expectations”). The proposed 
SEC rules have drawn some criticism, but by the time 
they are finalized, many U.S. businesses may already be 
required to make extensive climate-related disclosures 
under the California laws. 
California law allows for assurance by 
a CPA and requires engagements to be 
performed in accordance accordance with 
professional standards. CPA standards 
provide a well-established framework firms 
can use to comply with the requirements. 
SEC proposed climate-disclosure rules. The SEC’s 
stated goals include ensuring that investors have 
access to complete, consistent and comparable 
climate-related information in making their investment 
decisions. The proposed rules call for SEC registrants  
to disclose information that includes:  
•	 Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions. For accelerated and 
large accelerated filers, scopes 1 and 2 emissions 
would be subject to independent assurance to be 
phased in over the near-term. 
•	 Climate-related risks and their actual or reasonably 
likely material impacts on the registrant’s business, 
strategy and outlook. 
•	 The company’s governance of climate-related risks 
and related risk management approaches. 
•	 Climate-related financial statement metrics and 
related disclosures. 
•	 Details on climate-related targets and goals.

ESG: A new era in practice opportunities | 6
While some of the disclosures mirror guidelines that 
already exist in other widely-followed frameworks, the 
SEC’s disclosures would become mandatory for publicly 
traded companies when finalized.
The commission has declined to give a timeline for 
publishing the final rules. During a speech in Sept. 2023, 
SEC chair Gary Gensler noted that the commission is 
particularly focusing on issues that have been raised 
related to the proposed inclusion of scope 3 emissions, 
which some critics have questioned because of 
potential high compliance costs. 
European Union (EU) reporting requirements. The 
European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS) 
were adopted in July for all companies subject to 
the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive 
(CSRD), which apply to EU as well as non-EU 
organizations that have significant operations in the 
EU. In October EU legislators voted to incorporate these 
12 standards into EU law, with an effective date of 
January 1, 2024. While climate-related issues receive 
much of the attention in many proposed and existing 
frameworks, the ESRS encompasses the full range of 
ESG issues. According to the European Commission, 
the standards offer a high level of interoperability with 
International Sustainability Standards Board and 
the Global Reporting Initiative guidance. 
Scoping out the requirements 
When it comes to climate-related requirements:  
Refers to a company’s  
direct GHG emissions. 
Scope 1:
Scope 2:
Scope 3:
Includes indirect  
emissions related to 
purchased electricity  
or other types of energy. 
Encompasses emissions 
associated with upstream 
and downstream activities 
in the organization’s  
value chain.

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ESG: A new era in practice opportunities | 7
The value of CPA assurance 
Reporting and assurance are potential massive 
drivers of demand for ESG services. But while the 
global assurance market is growing, the percentage of 
assurance reports being performed by the profession 
has actually declined in recent years. A total of 57% of 
ESG assurance engagements were conducted by audit 
firms, according to a survey by IFAC and the AICPA & 
CIMA, compared with 63% two years earlier. “It’s going 
in the wrong direction for the profession,” noted Ami 
Beers, CPA, CGMA, senior director—Assurance and 
Advisory Innovation, AICPA & CIMA. The competition in 
this market includes various non-CPA providers, such as 
those offering verification of some type of ESG effort, 
consulting, engineering and non-CPA assurance. 
A key concern about this trend is the knowledge gap 
between CPAs and other service providers. Consultants 
and engineers with expertise in ESG areas may have 
less experience in the many facets of proper assurance. 
Among the arguments in favor of ESG assurance  
done by CPAs are: 
•	 The profession’s attestation standards, which  
have been supporting assurance of nonfinancial 
information for decades. 
•	 The profession’s oversight structure for engagements 
through quality management and peer review, which 
sets it apart. “A lack of oversight for other service 
providers is a point of AICPA advocacy,” Beers said. 
•	 The profession’s independence requirements. While 
CPAs are accustomed to maintaining independence 
in assurance engagements, other service providers 
may not do so. In fact, mandatory independence 
requirements may ultimately drive some non-CPAs 
out of this market if it forces them to change the way 
they work with clients. 
Source: The State of Play: Sustainability Disclosure and Assurance, IFAC and AICPA & CIMA, February 2023. 
Expected growth in demand for ESG assurance  
The most recent data available shows that:  
57%  
of ESG assurance 
engagements were 
conducted by firms, 
down  
from 63% two  
years earlier.  
64%  
of companies 
obtained some level 
of assurance or 
verification, a  
big jump  
from 51%. 
95%  
of large companies 
reported on ESG,  
up  
from 91%  
two years earlier.

ESG: A new era in practice opportunities | 8
More companies may turn to accountants for assurance 
as their needs mature and broaden. At present, many 
companies that are seeking assurance for the first 
time are focusing largely on GHG or other emissions, 
according to a study of global sustainability practice 
by the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) 
and the AICPA & CIMA. “That tends to be an area 
where companies turn to consultants or other service 
providers,” said David Madon, CPA, IFAC director, public 
policy and regulation. 
As assurance mandates grow, companies will likely seek 
assurance over a wider scope of topics—within other 
environmental topics and in social and governance areas. 
Since many other service providers specialize in specific 
aspects of ESG, the need for a broader perspective 
should lead to more opportunities for accountants. A 
Center for Audit Quality analysis of S&P 500 companies 
found that companies are increasingly more likely to 
gain assurance over topics such as water, energy, waste, 
employee health and safety, human capital disclosures 
and others—a trend that is expected to continue. 
At the same time, as mandates grow, “we’ll see 
companies take steps to enhance the quality of their 
ESG reporting by, for example, improving systems of 
internal control surrounding ESG reporting,” said Desiré 
Carroll, CPA, CAQ director, professional practice, a shift 
that should naturally lead them to CPAs. At the same 
time, “as the need for connectivity between financial and 
ESG information becomes more important, the public 
company auditor who performs the financial statement 
audit is well positioned to provide assurance in a 
connected way,” she said. 
Keep in mind that if a client will be seeking assurance, 
it will require data and processes that are audit-worthy. 
CPAs should expect that many may need time to  
build thorough and reliable ESG data collection  
systems, internal controls and internal audit structures, 
Madon said. 
Accountants are the best choice to perform 
engagements that connect sustainability assurance 
with financial statement audits, based on accountants’ 
rigorous and widely accepted professional, quality 
management and ethical standards. The CAQ analysis 
found that 90% of U.S. companies that obtained ESG 
assurance from a public company auditor used the same 
firm that performed their financial statement audit. The 
global survey by IFAC and the AICPA & CIMA found that 
70% of the time companies that obtained sustainability 
assurance from a professional accountant engaged their 
statutory auditor to review their ESG disclosures. 
“The move from voluntary to mandatory assurance will 
be a potential game changer for the profession versus 
other assurance providers,” Madon said. “The profession 
should feel confident we’re well positioned to provide 
that business.” 
IOSCO has encouraged international boards to develop 
global sustainability assurance standards. While 
accountants have turned to the International Auditing 
and Assurance Standards Board’s (IAASB) International 
Standard on Assurance Engagements 3000, Assurance 
Engagements Other Than Audits or Reviews of 
Historical Financial Information for guidance in ESG 
assurance, a new proposal, International Standard on 
Sustainability Assurance 5000, General Requirements 
for Sustainability Assurance Engagements is directed 
specifically at any type of sustainability engagement.  
It addresses a wide range of topics, including fraud,  
non-compliance with law and regulations, risk 
assessment, internal controls and other information.  
The Auditing Standards Board has a working group to 
review and comment on the proposal.  
The AICPA & CIMA provides a range 
of related resources for practitioners, 
including a new authoritative attestation 
engagement guide on greenhouse gas 
emissions information and climate-related 
financial disclosures.

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ESG: A new era in practice opportunities | 9
Quantifying the value in finance
CFOs attempting to get their arms around ESG issues 
are working to understand and quantify the factors 
involved. As CFOs continue to seek a financial ROI for 
sustainability programs, many may be ignoring the 
societal push from stakeholders, including employees 
and customers. However, there are solutions that 
can help determine value and respond to expanding 
stakeholder expectations.
A Harvard Business Review article offered one possible 
solution, a Return on Sustainability Investment (ROSI) 
analytic method to use in measuring financial returns 
on sustainability efforts. The impact of understanding 
these metrics can be significant. As the authors, a 
professor and a researcher at the NYU Stern Center 
for Sustainable Business, note, “nonfinancial metrics 
such as carbon emissions can reveal hundreds of 
millions of dollars in sustainability-related savings and 
growth.” In addition, quantifiable sustainability efforts 
can be a differentiator in the marketplace, appealing to 
talent and customers or business partners who have a 
commitment to sustainability efforts.
The authors set forth nine drivers of corporate 
financial performance that can be enhanced through 
sustainability strategies: innovation, operational 
efficiency, sales and marketing, customer loyalty, risk 
management, employee relations, supplier relations, 
media coverage and stakeholder engagement. As part 
of the ROSI process, the article recommends identifying 
the company’s current sustainability strategies and 
related changes in operational or management 
practices, ascertaining and quantifying the benefits 
and determining the overall monetary value. If finance 
can evaluate and communicate the value of company 
sustainability initiatives, it can better articulate their 
impact and value. The NYU Center’s site offers more 
ROSI resources and tools. The section in this report on 
“8 steps to building an ESG service line” describes other 
hurdles for finance teams, including resource limitations 
and timing of investment and returns. 
 
If finance can evaluate and 
communicate the value of company 
sustainability initiatives, it can better 
articulate their impact and value.

ESG: A new era in practice opportunities | 10
8 steps to building an ESG service line
How can CPAs benefit from the opportunities in this practice area? These best practices can help firms launch or 
enhance their ESG practice. 
1.	 Executive sponsorship is critical if the ESG services 
team is going to have sufficient resources, including 
adequate staffing and access to sales, marketing 
and other resources, said Andries Verschelden,  
co-founder and CEO of Good.Lab, an ESG 
performance solutions provider (see more about 
Good.Lab’s partnership with CPA.com in “Powering 
ESG service lines forward.”)  
2.	 Pick the right team leader. Verschelden advises 
companies to identify and empower an internal leader 
who is savvy about the firm’s inner workings and 
has experience in building practices or the potential 
leadership skills to do so. Then team that leader up 
with an expert in technical ESG issues. In recruiting 
for the team, keep in mind that an ESG practice:   
•	 Can be a hiring advantage among professionals 
who are seeking a deeper purpose in their work. 
•	 Can include a variety of professionals in addition 
to CPAs. 
3.	 Partner whenever possible. Since CPA firms are not 
experts in operations outside of financial processes 
or developing a decarbonization plan, they should 
be sure to focus on leveraging their own expertise. 
However, through a collaboration with an ESG 
consulting group or technology company, firms 
can find the technical or technology expertise they 
need without having to build from the ground up. 
This approach can also enable firms to provide 
the technology-enabled consulting clients will 
be seeking. An acquisition of a company with 
specialized expertise is another option. 
4.	 Don’t store the practice in a silo. ESG issues will 
touch on areas that include assurance, audit and tax, 
as well as industry specialties, said Chris Tower, CPA, 
who recently retired from his position as managing  
partner, Sustainability & ESG, at BDO. The ESG 
service line should be able tap into expertise and 
cooperation throughout the firm as needed. 
5.	 Build a practice based on market demand, not 
simply on firm capabilities. Firms may have many 
practice strengths, but the first and most important 
question to ask is, “What are the clients in your 
strongest industry areas actually seeking?”
6.	 Meet clients where they are. Most have likely 
never bought an ESG solution before, so they 
will have questions about budget and processes. 
Consider starting with a low-cost solution, such as 
an assessment or a diagnostic around compliance 
readiness, for example, to establish the firm as 
a trusted advisor. “Chances are if you do that 
right, they will come to you for future ESG needs,” 
Verschelden said. 
7.	 Understand internal hurdles for clients. Because 
the return on ESG efforts may be difficult to quantify 
and may not be immediately clear, companies often 
have to wrestle with the timing mismatch between 
making an investment and seeing a return. CPAs 
may need to help articulate the benefits that ESG 
information can offer to companies, including a 
deeper perspective on their business and improved 
decision-making. Another consideration is that, 
as reporting and assurance become mandatory, 
companies may tend to see them as new 
compliance burdens. However, “companies have 
to take a longer-term view and understand the true 
value of the information to investors,” said Madon. 
8.	 Provide your own sustainability report. “If you 
launch a service line without an introspective effort 
you’re making a mistake,” Tower advised, given the 
insights and credibility that sustainability reporting 
can provide.

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Understanding climate risk considerations and establishing a governance and management 
structure to manage and report on the risks and opportunities. The California Climate Accountability 
Package, for example, requires companies to consider the financial impact of physical changes caused 
by climate change and how those changes impact the business. Other considerations should include 
issues such as the cost of transitions away from fossil fuels to renewable energy throughout an 
organization’s operations. Most midmarket companies have not been measuring the financial impact  
of climate risk, providing an opportunity for accounting firms to help companies put a plan in place 
during the run up to the 2026 reporting deadlines.
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Addressing GHG emissions measuring and reporting, and understanding the carbon footprint. 
Companies will be seeking measurement and reporting advice and data assurance from their  
CPA firm, as well as advice to help them choose the best technology platform for these efforts. 
ESG strategy building. Most midmarket companies are seeking advice on enhancing their approach 
to ESG issues and addressing any mandates. The answers and the type and scope of solutions will 
be very different for a manufacturing company and a professional services firm, and for companies 
that are or are not facing compliance mandates. The company may need a roadmap and help in 
determining any sustainability targets and in understanding how to benchmark its efforts against its 
competitors and overall industry. In addition, a playbook on meeting compliance requirements can help 
companies address requirements. 
1
2
3
Three key services 
clients are seeking
There are a few core services that most 
companies are looking for now.
ESG: A new era in practice opportunities | 11

Powering ESG service lines forward 
Business model strategy is a key component in rolling 
out any new service. With that in mind, CPA.com has 
partnered with Good.Lab, an ESG performance solutions 
provider, on a practice development program to help 
firms accelerate their entry into the ESG advisory services 
market. The program launched in 2023 with an initial 
cohort of five firms from the AICPA Major Firms Group to 
develop a firm practice services roadmap that will enable 
firms to create service delivery plans and cultivate a 
practice. A second cohort is planned for 2024. 
To provide more of the training firms need, 
the AICPA & CIMA and the University of 
Oxford’s Saïd Business School are offering 
a new executive management program in 
sustainability for accounting and finance 
professionals. The AICPA & CIMA provides 
a variety of other sustainability-related 
professional development opportunities, 
including an ESG & Sustainability 
Conference. For other related tools, 
turn to the AICPA & CIMA Climate & 
Sustainability/ESG resource center. 
Meeting stakeholder expectations 
Many entities of all sizes already must meet sustainability 
reporting standards set by customers or business 
partners. For example:  
•	 Amazon’s Supply Chain Standards Manual requires 
suppliers and service providers “to behave in a lawful 
and responsible manner, protect the environment, act 
safely and responsibly, and safeguard worker rights.” 
The 21-page manual covers a supplier code, audit 
requirements and a corrective action plan, among  
other topics. 
•	 In its Supplier Expectations Compliance Areas, 
Walmart sets forth a lengthy list of U.S. and global 
supplier requirements in areas that include consumer 
protection, environmental health and safety, health 
and wellness product safety, and conflict minerals 
compliance, among others. 
•	 The federal government’s proposed Federal Supplier 
Climate Risks and Resilience Rule would set 
forth climate-related reporting requirements for 
companies with more than $50 million in annual 
contracts and separate rules for those with annual 
contracts between $7.5 million and $50 million. The 
world’s largest single buyer of goods and services, 
the government bought over $630 billion in a recent 
fiscal year. 
ESG: A new era in practice opportunities | 12

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ESG: A new era in practice opportunities | 13
Solving the matrix 
CPAs should think of the ESG landscape as a matrix 
with a complex set of drivers. Demand for reliable and 
assured ESG information will only continue, opening up 
a significant range of opportunities for firms. CPAs can 
add tremendous value to the market, but they will face 
competition, at least in the near-term. 
Other challenges in this space include pressure on 
some fronts to push back on corporate reporting 
requirements as well as political controversy about 
climate change in the United States. In the end, though, 
“if companies have good measurement and reporting, 
they should be able to make good decisions,” Melancon 
said. “As a profession, we need to be a player in helping 
society to make those decisions.”

ESG: A new era in practice opportunities | 14
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