Although corporations across the globe are maintaining or expanding their sustainability commitments, at least 70% of firms say that they aren't getting enough data from their suppliers to accurately track greenhouse gases in their supply chains. 

According to a survey of more than 1,200 professionals from MIT's Sustainable Supply Chain Lab (SSCL), 85% of companies are either sustaining or increasing their supply chain sustainability efforts compared with previous years. 

“What we found is strong evidence that sustainability still matters,” said researcher and SSCL director Josué Velázquez Martínez. “There are many things that remain to be done to accomplish those goals, but there’s a strong willingness from companies in all parts of the world to do something about sustainability.”

The report identifies Scope 3 emissions as the toughest challenge. While roughly 40% of firms closely track their direct Scope 1 and purchased-energy Scope 2 emissions, less than half of those companies also tabulate Scope 3 emissions with the same depth and accuracy, even though they can represent up to 75% of their total carbon footprint. And although firms blame that discrepancy on a lack of data from suppliers, MIT researchers noted that many companies can also take steps to upgrade their own analytics and tracking methods at the corporate level, given that half of all North American firms still use spreadsheets to tabulate emissions data.

Conversely, just 32% of European companies use spreadsheets, with the vast majority instead opting for so-called "life cycle assessment" software, which models a product’s full environmental footprint from material sourcing and production, to transport, use and end-of-life disposal. 

“You get what you measure," Velázquez Martínez explained. “If you measure poorly, you’re going to get poor decisions that most likely won’t drive the reductions you’re expecting."

Regional forces are also shaping how sustainability commitments play out. In Europe, regulatory mandates such as the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive — which requires companies to publish regular reporting on their environmental impacts — remain the main driver of corporate action. However, in North America, investors and executives play the largest role in driving a company's strategy.