A number of our Transparency Criteria relate to the type of qualifications that a company seeks for C-Suite officers – or officers that should be in the C-Suite – that have titles that tend to be on the newer side compared to the old-fashioned CEOs, CFOs and COOs.
For example, take the Chief Compliance Officer. Transparency Criteria #62 for the ESG report states: “The company states whether it has a Chief Compliance Officer or similarly titled position and who that person reports to.”
Transparency Criteria #7 for the ESG report states: “The company states whether it has a Chief Sustainability Officer or similarly titled position and who that position reports to.”
And Transparency Criteria #67 for the ESG report states: “The company states whether it has a Chief Information Security Officer or similarly titled position and who that person reports to.”
These criteria provide stakeholders with a sense of the level of importance placed upon this topic by learning who the CCO reports to: Is this an elevated position? Does the CCO have policy making authority? This all relates to the tone at the top, a concept that is so critical for companies to take to heart – and to convey to stakeholders that the company takes seriously.
For an example of disclosure for each of these types of officers (and the related reporting structure), I suggest you look at the 2023 Mastercard Form 10-K (pages 8, 45 and 70). Also see Travelers’ 2023 Sustainability Report (page 56):
