The Effects of CSRD and ESRS on Sustainability Reporting Processes in Sweden : Insights from Auditors and Sustainability Assurance Professionals

Sammanfattning

The Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) and the European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS) represent a shift in European sustainability reporting by introducing more standardized, transparent, and assurance-oriented requirements. In Sweden, the first year of mandatory CSRD/ESRS provides a unique empirical setting for examining how the framework has affected companies' sustainability reporting processes after the requirements have moved from preparation to practical application. The purpose of this study is to examine how auditors and sustainability assurance professionals perceive and experience that CSRD and ESRS have affected companies' processes with sustainability reporting, within a Swedish context. The study adopts a qualitative research approach based on six semi-structured interviews with auditors and sustainability assurance professionals in Sweden. The empirical material was analyzed through a thematic analysis inspired by the Gioia method. The findings show that CSRD and ESRS have strengthened sustainability reporting by moving it from a largely voluntary and communication-oriented practice toward a more standardized, rule-based, and assurance-oriented reporting process. Sustainability reporting has become more integrated into companies' strategic direction, governance structures, and operational processes. Indicating that CSRD has not only changed what companies are required to disclose, but also how sustainability information is produced, controlled, and integrated internally. At the same time, the study shows that this transition remains operationally challenging. Double materiality is particularly difficult to apply in practice, as companies must determine what is material, justify why certain matters are included or excluded, assess impacts across the value chain, and connect sustainability matters to the business model. This shows that the main challenge of CSRD is not to only comply with the disclosure requirements, but to translate complex sustainability assessments into assurance-ready reports. Regulatory uncertainty connected to the Omnibus-related changes further complicates this development, as companies that may no longer fall within the reporting scope could reduce their investments in the systems, controls, and documentation needed for credible sustainability reporting. The study contributes to emerging research on CSRD and ESRS by showing how the framework is understood from the assurance side of the reporting process. Overall, CSRD and ESRS have strengthened the foundation for credible sustainability reporting, while companies' adaptation to the new framework remains an ongoing process.