How to create your first sustainability report: practical, without Excel chaos, and based on the VSME standard.
Many Swiss companies feel the pressure: not because Brussels suddenly governs Switzerland, but because the market is creating facts. German large customers, international supply chains and increasingly Swiss banks too are asking for a sustainability report for SMEs, often in formats designed for corporations.
This is where ESG reporting under the VSME standard offers a chance. It is the lowest common denominator that European business accepts. For Swiss companies, it is above all one thing: a "travel adapter" for data flows. The best part: the standard was developed specifically for SMEs and follows the principle of "accepting gaps" (if applicable).
The most important principle: "If applicable"
Before you collect data, good news: the VSME asks for flexibility, not perfection. The "if applicable" principle means you only need to report information if it applies to your company.
- No production with high water consumption? Then the water module does not apply.
- Fewer than 50 employees? Many social metrics fall away.
With this pragmatic approach, we go through the checklist for the Basic module.
1. The basis: company profile
The VSME Basic module starts gently but requires precision. This prevents your company from being measured against large-corporation benchmarks by mistake.
What you should have ready:
- Short strategy statement: do you have sustainability goals? (A simple yes/no is often enough.)
- Headcount: total number of employees and full-time equivalents (FTE).
- Financial figures: total assets and net revenue.
2. Environment: energy & emissions
The goal is to calculate emissions (Scope 1 & 2). Don't worry: you provide the consumption data, ZEROvia does the calculations.
Find the following invoices:
- Electricity: total consumption in kWh.
- Fuels: consumption of gas, oil or wood (heating/process heat).
- Vehicle fleet: fuel consumption (diesel/petrol in litres).
3. Social: the workforce
Here the VSME follows European standards, but thanks to the thresholds for Swiss SMEs it is quite manageable.
The following data points are requested:
- Gender distribution: number of women/men.
- Occupational safety: number of accidents (data source: SUVA statement).
- Wages: is an adequate wage paid?
4. Governance: clean business
Unlike corporate reports, the Basic module focuses on one hard indicator:
- Convictions/fines: were there any convictions for corruption in the reporting year?
Conclusion: use the data you already have
The data for simple ESG reporting is already available at 90% of Swiss SMEs. Thanks to the "if applicable" principle, you don't need to fear empty fields. Doing this considerably strengthens your negotiating position with banks.Outlook: Is the basic module not enough because large customers are asking about the supply chain? Read Part 2: VSME Comprehensive & supply chain.