Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) is an important framework that evaluates a company’s impact on the environment and society. With increased focus on sustainability and risk mitigation, many investors, companies, and the public are using the ESG framework for understanding a company’s operations and its potential future.
From an organization’s perspective, meeting ESG requirements, especially the audit and documentation processes, are time-consuming. This is where ESG software platforms help.
In this article, we will explore the features of a popular platform called Workiva while evaluating how other Workiva competitors fare.
Overview of Workiva
Workiva is a cloud-based platform for ESG, audits, risk management, and corporate governance. It is a comprehensive tool that can help with collaboration, data management, and compliance. Workiva is widely used by organizations to prepare and file financial statements, create ESG reports for different stakeholders, assess environmental and financial risks, and manage audit trails.
Key Features
- Connects data from multiple sources for accurate financial reporting.
- Automates repetitive tasks.
- Provides real-time updates.
- Supports compliance for SEC filings, financial disclosures, and meeting the requirements of mandatory regulations.
- Tracks and reports sustainability metrics.
- Generates comprehensive financial reports.
- Helps identify and prioritize risks across business functions.
- Links data across documents to provide a centralized view of data.
With such features, Workiva can improve reporting and streamline workflows. However, some organizations may prefer to look at Workiva’s top competitors, especially if they are looking for specific use cases or features.
Workiva Competitors
Many platforms offer comparable features and unique benefits. Below we analyze Workiva’s top competitors.
Diligent Sustainability Reporting Software
Source: Diligent
This is a comprehensive platform for managing and evaluating ESG sustainability initiatives, followed by extensive reporting.
Key Features
- Centralized repository for all ESG-related data.
- Automated data collection.
- Offers 80-different audit-ready report templates plus extensive customization.
- Makes it easy to track ESG-related risks.
- Facilitates collaboration among stakeholders.
Comparison with Workiva
While Workiva offers a broader scope of functionalities across financial and audit processes, Diligent stands out for its deep focus on ESG metrics and sustainability initiatives. Organizations heavily invested in ESG strategies may find Diligent more aligned with their goals.
Benchmark ESG Reporting
Source: Benchmark
Benchmark ESG provides comprehensive tools for managing and reporting ESG data, catering to enterprises focused on regulatory compliance and risk mitigation.
Key Features
- Customizable dashboard and metrics.
- Automates workflows for data collection and reporting.
- Integrates well with risk management and compliance tools.
- Compares ESG metrics with competitors.
- Provides contextual understanding for stakeholders.
- Helps identify best practices.
Comparison with Workiva
This platform emphasizes flexibility and customization by offering tailored solutions for different industries. However, its financial reporting capabilities are less extensive compared to Workiva’s all-in-one platform.
Envizi
Source: IBM Envizi
Envizi, now an IBM company, specializes in ESG data management. Founded in 2004 and based in Eveleigh, Australia, Envizi streamlines sustainability efforts through effective data capture, analysis, and reporting. It is ideal for companies at every stage of their decarbonization journey.
Key Features
- Provides detailed analytics for energy, carbon, and sustainability metrics.
- Integrates with operational systems to automate data flows.
- Performs scenario modeling to evaluate sustainability initiatives.
- Tracks and manages GHG emissions across different scopes.
- Uses AI for complex emission calculations.
- Generates audit-ready reports.
- Comes with customizable dashboards.
Comparison with Workiva
Envizi focuses on providing actionable insights for environmental performance. While it’s an excellent tool for sustainability, it lacks the financial and audit capabilities that Workiva offers.
Intelex ESG Management
Source: Intelex
This is a robust tool for ESG and environmental compliance, with emphasis on health and safety along with sustainability.
Key Features
- Comprehensive compliance tracking.
- Comes with 40,000 preloaded emission factors across Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions.
- Mobile-friendly tools for real-time data input.
- Uses a powerful calculation engine for customized, complex emissions calculations.
- Pre-built templates for ESG reporting.
- Offer visual dashboards for tracking ESG initiatives.
- Supports proactive risk assessment and management.
Comparison with Workiva
Intelex excels in health and safety reporting, but may not offer the same level of integration across financial and audit functionalities as Workiva.
ServiceNow ESG Management
Source: ServiceNow ESG Management
This is a specialized add-on to the ServiceNow platform to track, manage, and report on ESG metrics. It also helps businesses transform their ESG objectives into measurable impact, and can be a good choice for companies already using ServiceNow.
Key Features
- Centralizes ESG data management.
- Automates workflows for data collection and reporting.
- Integrates with ServiceNow’s IT and operational platforms.
- Comes with comprehensive dashboards for viewing metrics, goals, and disclosure statuses.
- Monitors progress against established goals.
- Creates real-time and narrative reports.
Comparison with Workiva
ServiceNow’s strength lies in its ability to integrate ESG efforts with IT and operational processes, while Workiva’s focus is broader, covering financial and audit reporting in addition to ESG.
Besides these platforms, there are other ESG software that are not direct Workiva competitors.
ESG Software Not Direct Alternatives to Workiva
While many ESG platforms excel in specific areas, not all of them are designed to serve as comprehensive alternatives to Workiva. Below, we explore a few notable ESG solutions that bring value but fall short of replacing Workiva due to their narrower focus or limited feature set.
Greenly
Source: Greenly
Greenly helps businesses measure, reduce, and offset their carbon footprint. Founded in Paris, France, Greenly simplifies carbon accounting and improves sustainability reporting for organizations of all sizes across various industries. It is also well-known for its user-friendly interface and robust analytics capabilities.
Key Features
- Integrates with over 100 enterprise software systems to automate the collection and evaluation of carbon emissions.
- Evaluate emissions across all scopes.
- Offers personalized recommendations to offset carbon footprint.
- Compares data against industry-wide benchmarks.
- Generates custom reports.
- Includes programs for increasing employee awareness.
Comparison with Workiva
Greenly’s primary focus is carbon management, with limited capabilities in financial reporting, audit management, or broader ESG integration, making it unsuitable as a full replacement for Workiva.
GaiaLens
Source: GainLens
GaiaLens is an AI-powered sustainability analytics platform that simplifies ESG analysis by providing real-time data, comprehensive scoring, and automated reporting tools. In particular, it helps investors evaluate the sustainability performance of their portfolios.
Key Features
- AI-driven ESG performance scoring.
- Detailed insights into portfolio sustainability.
- Benchmarking tools for ESG comparisons.
- Investment screening based on financial criteria and ESG factors.
- Support more than 200 ESG factors and metrics.
- A dynamic scoring system for comprehensive assessment.
- Intuitive dashboard.
Comparison with Workiva
GaiaLens is more for investment-focused ESG insights rather than internal compliance, reporting, or financial tasks. It lacks the document collaboration and risk management tools offered by Workiva.
FigBytes
Source: Figbytes
FigBytes is an integrated sustainability management platform that automates, manages, and reports on ESG initiatives. Moreover, it captures operational and supplier data to create and track sustainability strategies and reporting.
Key Features
- Strategic ESG goal setting.
- Comprehensive dashboards with visual storytelling.
- Integration with global frameworks like GRI and CDP.
- Real-time performance tracking.
- Supports over 600 ESG frameworks.
Comparison with Workiva
Though FigBytes offers strong ESG visualization and reporting tools, it does not include the financial reporting or audit management features essential for organizations seeking a Workiva alternative.
In all, the above tools bring valuable ESG capabilities to the table, but their specialized focuses limit their applicability as full-scale replacements for Workiva. Organizations with broader needs, including financial and audit reporting, would require more comprehensive platforms like those discussed in the previous section.
Final Thoughts
In all, selecting the right platform for reporting and compliance hinges on your organization’s specific needs and priorities. Workiva remains a strong contender for businesses looking for a unified solution encompassing financial, ESG, audit, and risk management. However, platforms like Diligent, Benchmark ESG, Envizi, Intelex, and ServiceNow ESG Management offer specialized features that might better align with certain organizational goals.
Ultimately, the decision comes down to understanding your reporting requirements, budget, and the level of integration needed. We hope the above analysis of Workiva competitors can help you identify the best solution to drive efficiency and accuracy in your organization’s reporting processes.