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The main UK providers of assurance for corporate non-financial reports offer a ‘very similar’ range of services, says the first in-depth analysis of the sector.
The business research company Verdantix assessed 18 providers against 82 criteria, including services offered, the robustness of procedures, impartiality and international reach. All the firms had publicly assured a FTSE 100 non-financial report in 2007 and continue to provide the service in 2008.
Verdantix says the Corporate Citizenship consultancy – created by the merger of The Smart Company and The Corporate Citizenship Company – has the biggest share of the FTSE 100 assurance market at 15 per cent, followed by Deloitte and ERM (11 per cent each), then Bureau Veritas, Ernst & Young and URS (nine per cent each). All these were found by Verdantix to be best for service quality. Reassurance Network, which has only four per cent of the market, was also judged among the leaders.
However, the analysis found all the firms offered much the same breadth of service, regardless of their market share or size, and concluded that an established market presence is ‘likely to be associated with higher cost’.
Costs ranged from £20,000 to £120,000 ($40,000–$240,000) depending on the type of service offered, which ranged from an assessment of the accuracy of data and assertions to recommendations for improved systems and performance.
The report, which is being sold by Verdantix, says that, broadly speaking, the firms have similar expertise in procedures, site visits, reporting systems and interviewing techniques. However, some shine in certain disciplines, with Deloitte particularly strong in risk analysis and Corporate Citizenship singled out as a leader in stakeholder engagement work.
Many consultancies lacked experience in biodiversity and HIV and Aids programmes. KPMG and Bureau Veritas were named as leaders in these areas because of their work for Anglo American and British American Tobacco.
Providers were criticized for failing to explain clearly conflicts of interest that could arise between consulting and assurance assignments.
‘Generally, internal controls are strong enough to stop a supplier from designing and assuring the same systems’, said Verdantix director David Metcalfe. ‘But many assurers are lax in how they communicate their relationship to clients in published assurance statements.’ Acona, Ernst & Young and URS ‘stand out as being consistently transparent’ on this issue, according to Verdantix, which suggests the market is worth £15million a year, with few providers supporting a team of more than ten assurers.
The business research company Verdantix assessed 18 providers against 82 criteria, including services offered, the robustness of procedures, impartiality and international reach. All the firms had publicly assured a FTSE 100 non-financial report in 2007 and continue to provide the service in 2008.
Verdantix says the Corporate Citizenship consultancy – created by the merger of The Smart Company and The Corporate Citizenship Company – has the biggest share of the FTSE 100 assurance market at 15 per cent, followed by Deloitte and ERM (11 per cent each), then Bureau Veritas, Ernst & Young and URS (nine per cent each). All these were found by Verdantix to be best for service quality. Reassurance Network, which has only four per cent of the market, was also judged among the leaders.
However, the analysis found all the firms offered much the same breadth of service, regardless of their market share or size, and concluded that an established market presence is ‘likely to be associated with higher cost’.
Costs ranged from £20,000 to £120,000 ($40,000–$240,000) depending on the type of service offered, which ranged from an assessment of the accuracy of data and assertions to recommendations for improved systems and performance.
The report, which is being sold by Verdantix, says that, broadly speaking, the firms have similar expertise in procedures, site visits, reporting systems and interviewing techniques. However, some shine in certain disciplines, with Deloitte particularly strong in risk analysis and Corporate Citizenship singled out as a leader in stakeholder engagement work.
Many consultancies lacked experience in biodiversity and HIV and Aids programmes. KPMG and Bureau Veritas were named as leaders in these areas because of their work for Anglo American and British American Tobacco.
Providers were criticized for failing to explain clearly conflicts of interest that could arise between consulting and assurance assignments.
‘Generally, internal controls are strong enough to stop a supplier from designing and assuring the same systems’, said Verdantix director David Metcalfe. ‘But many assurers are lax in how they communicate their relationship to clients in published assurance statements.’ Acona, Ernst & Young and URS ‘stand out as being consistently transparent’ on this issue, according to Verdantix, which suggests the market is worth £15million a year, with few providers supporting a team of more than ten assurers.
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