Which of the following is not considered an external benefit of sustainability reporting?

Sustainability reporting is primarily focused on communicating an organization’s environmental, social, and governance (ESG) efforts to exterior stakeholders, which enhances their understanding of the company's operations and contributions toward sustainability. The benefits derived from such reporting can be categorized into external and internal benefits.

Improved management systems is an internal benefit because it directly relates to how a company organizes, processes, and governs its sustainability practices. This improvement often involves internal processes, policies, and practices that enhance operational performance, thus making it more of a functional and administrative aspect rather than a direct benefit to external stakeholders.

On the other hand, benefits like improved company reputation and brand value, competitive advantage, and investor attractiveness all relate to how external audiences perceive and interact with the company. These are critical external benefits because they relate to stakeholder interests, including consumers, investors, and business partners, who gauge a company’s sustainability performance and, by extension, its overall desirability in the market. Furthermore, this impacts overall company value and long-term sustainability by fostering trust and loyalty among those stakeholders.